


Where do your loyalties lie?

by isawamansobeautifulistartedcrying



Series: Where do your loyalties lie? [1]
Category: my hero - Fandom, 僕のヒーローアカデミア | Boku no Hero Academia | My Hero Academia
Genre: Action & Romance, Action/Adventure, Alternate Universe - Medieval, Alternate Universe - Quirks (My Hero Academia), Alternate Universe - Royalty, Eventual Romance, Friendship, King Yagi Toshinori | All Might, Multi, Mutual Pining, Prince Bakugou Katsuki, Prince Midoriya Izuku, Prince Todoroki Shouto, Slow Romance, literally so much ACTION, will add spicy tags later
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-10-05
Updated: 2019-03-16
Packaged: 2019-07-25 10:49:47
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 18
Words: 110,715
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16196033
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/isawamansobeautifulistartedcrying/pseuds/isawamansobeautifulistartedcrying
Summary: A medieval AU that features lots of plot and smut.Prince Midoriya is proud to have been chosen to serve his kingdom as the next king, despite not having a direct or royal bloodline to the current king. He vows to strengthen his body, mind, and soul to properly rule his new kingdom, though the public doesn't know about him yet. To become a righteous king, he must also understand the dangers of negotiating and uniting with neighboring kingdoms. One of his first tasks is to live in each kingdom undercover, which might not seem so bad at the start. He finds himself in all sorts of situations, and most interestingly, discovers how important love is in all of its aspects.





	1. Where do your loyalties lie?

**Author's Note:**

> Hello everyone! Thank you for accompanying me in this journey. This first chapter is really me trying to explain how Midoriya is going to act for the rest of this story, (I actually really want him to be strong, physically and mentally!) as well as his friendship with Iida (Iida stans, this chapter is for you!!) Enjoy ~

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> WELCOME ALL.
> 
> I am (go)BEYOND excited to do this AU. Royal/Medieval AU's haven't gotten much attention since that awesome ending from S2 ended, but my HEART wants a more detailed version with more action and plot in it, SO HERE I GO.  
> Enjoy!

“Would it be too much of a bother to put the pork and rice in a bowl?”

“Ah, not at all young man” the waitress nodded, scribbling into her notepad and disappearing into the kitchen again.

The pub was fairly busy for an early afternoon, or so Midoriya thought it was. He was sure that people rather spent early afternoons visiting family or getting tasks done rather than spend time idly and eating. 

“Man… I really have been out of touch with everything for a while…” he sighed to himself. “I don't even know how the people spend their days anymore… how embarrassing for a future..”

Someone from a table near him suddenly erupted into laughter, interrupting his train of thought. He couldn't deny that the atmosphere of the pub was almost perfect. There was laughter constantly being heard, both loud and quiet. Families sat around listening attentively to each other stories. A nearby window was allowing light to pour in from the brilliant sun outside, and shone on couples exchanging sweet words to their beloveds while eating. Oh, but the best part was the food. Sweet, tangy, and spicy aromas constantly lingered in the air, along with the sly bitterness of wines and beers. With his hunger, Midoriya could've even smelled the delicious pork cutlet being fried in the kitchen.

Actually, now that he thought about it… he really was… 

“Hungry…” he mumbled to himself. His stomach accompanied his thoughts and made a sound of its own.

“Is there any sane reason for you to purposely pain yourself like that? Or rather, I’m not completely surprised since you have a tendency to act like a masochist.” A voice behind him said.

The deepness of the voice made Midoriya jump, but he knew immediately who it was. “Haha… so it seems I’ve been caught” Midoriya said quietly, turning in his chair to face non other than Iida.

“Actually… Iida began to say while taking a seat across from Midoriya, “I’ve been following you since you left.”

Midoriya was taken aback. “W-what?? Impossible, I would have - “

“I have no doubt that your running, hiding, and stealth skills are superb, but I mean, look at who you're dealing with here” Iida announced proudly, pointing his right thumb at himself. “I was born to deal with a brat like you!” He laughed a little to himself. “Thank you though, it was fun actually, good practice.”

Midoriya slunk into his chair. “I didn't lose you even a little?” he asked sheepishly. He knew Iida spoke the truth though. This was the captain of his royal guard, a man whose entire 5 senses, and maybe even a secret 6th with his proudness, have been shaped and fine-tuned since he was a child. A fearless man seen worthy by all of his colleagues, and trusted to protect the next generation king. 

Iida saw obvious disappointment in Midoriya’s face and sighed. “It’s really thanks to... “ he hesitated. “This is sudden and I’m probably forbidden to speak about it, but I was… taught to recognize your… scent, “ he continued, “It took awhile, but well, it proved to be useful today. So I had that in my favor.”

“My…” Midoriya began to say, “Scent?!” he exclaimed. “T-thats amazing Iida! No wonder I didn't shake you off at all! What was the training for that like?? More importantly, how did you practice with my specific sce-”

Iida put out a hand towards Midoriya and halted him. “Your highness, please. Not many know about this ability, or even think about it. Only myself, my teacher, some ninjas probably and well, now you. Plus, talking about something this… weird might attract attention…”

“Well calling me ‘your highness’ isn't exactly subtle, is it.” Midoriya deadpanned.

Iida perked up. “Ah! You're right.” He cleared his throat, “HAHAHA! PLEASE WAIT A MINUTE WITH YOUR JOKES!! HAHAHAHAHAHA… HA!!!”

“Iida… now the people are definitely…” Midoriya began to say, but when he looked around, nobody seemed to care less about their presence. He sighed in relief. “You will discuss this new ‘trait’ with me when we return.” he told Iida.

With an eyebrow perked up, Iida stared at Midoriya. “Oh, so you're going to come back with me without putting up a fight? You always say something along the lines of, ‘But I want to see more!’ or ‘But all I do is work!’ and my favorite ‘Please find it in your heart to let me stay out!’” he laughed quietly. But when he saw the new expression on Midoriya's face, he grew silent quickly.

Midoriya continued to stare at him. “I believe the verdict for mocking a king is certainly treason… and the usual punishment for treason is…” he trailed off, but Iida quickly bowed to get him to stop.

“Please your highness” Iida whispered. “I meant not to offend you.” He picked up his head and looked around, ignoring Midoriya's long stare. “For a moment, I just felt it natural to speak to you normally, since we’re in a common-folk place like this.”

“Mm… So your idea of speaking normally includes mocking somebody? Interesting… even fearful. The way you're looking for trouble... Perhaps Im not the only masochist here?”

Iida laughed again. “Anyways, you're lucky his highness is patient enough to let you escape like this. Most princes never dare take a step away from the castle grounds without permission or a squadron, much less without his royal guard. It’s no surprise you're in his good favors though, I mean with all you have done for him.”

The king… Iida spoke another truth. This escape attempt seemed oddly easy, all Midoriya did was pretend to use the restroom, something he was sure wouldn't work but ended up in his favor. He smiled at the kindness of the king.

The waitress brought two new glasses of water for both men. Iida thanked her and took a large swig. “So, what brought you to this place today anyways? You always end up in a village in the south and far from the castle, but here is north and not far at all.”

“Huh? Its not far?” Midoriya questioned. “I seemed to have been walking foreve-.” Before he could finish his sentence, his stomach let out a large grumble.

“My my, that sounded quite angry,” the waitress noted, setting down the pork cutlet bowl in front of Midoriya. “For you sir,” she turned to Iida, “would you like anything?”

Iida slowly raised his hand. “No thank you. Besides, if I got anything, Im sure he,” he pointed at Midoriya, “would end up snatching it and eating it as well.”

In amongst of his devouring his food, Midoriya gave Iida a mocking smile.

The waitress let out a laugh. “Then you can order even more! There's no harm in filling your stomachs to your heart's content, especially with those, “ she eyed Iida’s arms, “well-maintained figures.” She also winked at him.

Midoriya groaned. Iida blushed. “Your marketing strategies are remarkable,” he managed to say, “but I really am on a full stomach already. Thank you for caring.”

“Well then, please save your appetite and return!” And with that, the waitress left to attend another table nearby. 

When she was a safe distance away, Iida turned back to Midoriya. “Oi oi, what was that groan for?”

Before he responded, Midoriya finished chewing his current bite of food and swallowed hard. “I thought I'd be more immune to the reactions of girls about you, but just now I felt these delicious bites of pork run back up my throat.” He stuck his tongue out in defeat.  
“Hey now, you really cannot blame them. I mean, Lo-”

“‘Look at who they're dealing with’ yes yes. Amazing. I'm surprised I haven't fallen to your advancements of trying to court me.” Midoriya responded. The look on Iidas face confirmed that he struck a nerve. Not a huge one, but one with an impact that gave him enough satisfaction.

“Mido- Y-your highness! We both know that it was a way to prevent you from being forced to accept date proposals from others!” Iida signed and adjusted his glasses. “Besides, bringing that up here? Now? You sound jealous. That pork is really making you rash. Did you drink a ton of wine before I decided to come in after you? I also cannot believe you’d risk escaping and traveling away from the castle to taste food that could be made in your own chefs.”

“But this one is tasstyyyy” Midoriya swooned, taking in large bites. He even offered the bowl to Iida, who politely declined. 

The pub continued to fill up, and soon there weren't even enough tables to seat the line of families waiting outside. Midoriya completely finished his bowl, and eyed a group of men who were beginning to leave from a table near them. He also prepared to leave, but as he dug into his pockets to pay for the meal, to his surprise, his pockets were completely empty. His eyes grew wide for a moment, but Iida leaned over with a hefty amount of bills. 

“You didn't even prepare yourself enough to bring money.” Iida sighed. 

“Wow, thats a royal guard for you!” Midoriya beamed, leaving behind a nice sum of bills for the waitress.

As they were exiting, Iida begun to show worry. “Your highness, if we leave that much as a tip to the waitress, she will think it was because we owed her for complimenting me and will begin to do it often with others to receive better payment as well! What kind of lesson is that, it could even lead to-”

“Iida…” Midoriya spoke quietly. “For a moment, please stay quiet.”

Iida understood that Midoriya was speaking seriously, and accompanied him quietly.

The group of men that Midoriya was eyeing were ahead of them, not so much to make it obvious that they were following them but enough to know where they were going. Lida side-eyed Midoriya, and understood from the look in his eye that they were about to do something that definitely make the day more interesting.

\----------  
“Oi! I can hear those brats from here. If you don't shut them up within the next 10 minutes, you'll also be sold to the animals that want them.”  
“Y-Yessir!”

The smaller figure ran into a dark shed, which seemed to be the source of all the sobs and yells. The heftier figure, presumably the leader, ordered another group of men to guard the area around the shed, and they also scurried to fulfill their roles.

There were abandoned houses everywhere, an abandoned village even at that, and about two houses away lay Midoriya and Iida on the rooftop.

“Geez… a whole abandoned village? This are basically asks for evil to be done here.” Midoriya muttered to himself, narrowing his eyes to get a better view of the situation.

“Your highness…” Iida began to say. “Assuming you want to do something about this, let's think rationally, please, for my sake.”

“Iida,” Midoriya said slowly, beginning to rise. “I didn’t become that person by simply observing and waiting.” 

He jumped onto the next roof, successfully landing without raising suspicion from any of the members of the group. He crouched behind a crumbling chimney, and began to hear more conversations from two men below him.

“--- We really outdone ourselves this time huh? We got so many good ones.”

“Keep your voice down. But damn right, what's even better is that even though there's less of us, the people we got are strong enough to make up for it, and now we all get even more money.”

‘Less of us…’ Midoriya repeated in his mind. So this is a group of villains that must surely be known, and must have gotten caught at one point which resulted in the loss of members. But dealing with kidnappings? There were lots of cases involving kidnapping, but none that had a significant large group behind them. Unless…

“I’m definitely buying myself some of those whores in the Grasslands kingdom. Hear they give some of the best game out there”

“What? Who’d you hear that from? I didn't take you as a guy who has many conversations with people…”

“Shut the fuck up. Doesn't matter how you get the information, just that you got it. But man… just thinking about it makes me-”

“Discussing personal fantasies while you’re supposed be keeping guard? You all looked tough, but I see now that you're nothing but dreaming amateurs.” Midoriya said swiftly, jumping down from the roof above them and pinning one down on the floor. Surprisingly, the only loud sounds were coming from the grunts of the man being pinned down by Midoriya, and the seemingly inaudible audible shock coming from the other man.

Looking at the other mans wide eyes, Midoriya began to speak again. “Look, you look like you're about to soil your pants. I'd like to avoid that, and I'm sure you would too, so mind telling me what's going on and the name of your leader? Then you can escape here with your limbs attached.”

A smooth taunt, but the enemy wasn't having it. “What do you take us for, weakling!!”

Suddenly the ground below them started to shake, except it wasn't the ground and instead the person he was pinning down. He was forced to jump away, and he barely had time to react to the sword being flung at him. Midoriya knew he really wasn't in any trouble though, because the enemies sword clashed violently with a sword that was in front of Midoriya.

“Deku!” Iida yelled. Midoriya and him agreed to use this alias when combating against enemies, although Iida was sure he’d never let Midoriya do that exact thing. Preparing to counterstrike against the enemy, he spoke again. “Your interrogating skills are unacceptable!!” And he began to slash away. 

His power alone was fierce enough to get the attention of both villains, and they chose to fight Iida together. “Fools…” Iida said quietly, uncovering 6 cylinders on both of his calves. 

“Woah woah Ingenium” Midoriya spoke cautiously, eyeing the cylinders. “Is it really time to us those yet?”

“If you want to hurry up and ambush the front before these guys can warn them about us, yes.”

“Right. Hurry up and here and come aid me then!” Midoriya yelled at him, running away from the fight quickly.

“Milias!” One of the villains spoke. “Go warn the bo-!”

He was interrupted by one of Iida’s kicks, who seemingly rushed over in the blink of an eye. Before the villain was able to understand what was going on, Iida brutally hit his gut with the handle of his sword, immediately making the villain bend over in pain.”Huh, usually that’d make someone spill out their insides. Either I’m weak today or I must secretly feel bad for you.” he taunted. He was only able to catch a glance of hatred that the villain had in his eyes before his partner also began swinging a sword at him, going particularly for his face. 

Iida easily dodged the attack, and took a step back. “Tch… your skills are so sloppy, even a newly hired guard trainee could beat you.”

“Guard…? Oh shit, you’re castle folk aren’t you…” the villain realized, scowling. “You would never understand our motives or our positions… you'll never know the pain or the hurt we’ve been through.” The villains face glanced down at his partner on the ground, and suddenly his face seemed to grow angrier than it was a moment ago. “Actually, I’m really thankful I get to fuck with one of you right now!!” and he began to run at Iida, raising his sword to slash at his right arm.

At first Iida underestimated his enemy, judging his skills to be close to nothing after the blunt attack performed on him, but now the villain seemed faster and more attentive to Iida’s reactions. He successfully counter-attacked on the slash toward his arm, and ended up raising the villains attack arm with his own. He saw an opening for the villains face, and quickly used his left arm to get a punch in.

The force behind Iidas punch was so brutal that his own knuckles ached with a hint of pain, but it successfully knocked the enemy to the ground. “I may not understand your pain… or hurt… or position,” Iida began to say, adjusting his glasses and then aiming his sword down. 

“I don't want to hear your bullshit!” The villain exclaimed, crawling backwards.

“I may not, “ Iida continued anyways, “but he does.” He stepped forward to get another hit on the villain to that he would be unable to move, but the villain quickly rose and charged at him with a dagger. 

It was a feeble attack, one often made by the prey when they knew their lives were about to be compromised, a desperate cry to hopefully turn the situation into their favor, but Iida was having none of it. He easily dodged the attack by moving to the right, and circled around him with a speed like no other, and sped back to hit the back of the villains neck with the handle of his sword. 

“Do listen to me when I try to speak highly of my master.”

“Go…. to….” and those were the last of the villains words before he sunk into a deep sleep.

“Him, I assume you were trying to say” Iida responded. Both villains seemed to be out cold. Quickly, he restrained them with some rope that he had brought along with him on his journey and rushed out to join Midoriya.

\-------  
“You’re foolish enough to have come alone, brat”

“True, but I would never be foolish enough to end up operating in disgusting schemes like this. Are you prepared to fight this battle and lose?” Midoriya questioned the villain. He was still unarmed, but nonetheless had an expression that vowed he would lose against the villain.

“Dont fuck with me. I will be the one to triumph tonight, and your pitiful relatives will mourn for you, if you even have any.” The villain growled. His weapon was one to be feared at first glance. It was a large scathe, and was decorated with scraps of clothes and dried blood, presumably from his victims. It disgusted Midoriya. 

Before Midoriya could retort, the villain was already charging at him, aiming for his right side. 

‘Wow… this is similar to…’ he began to think as he dodged the attack. 

“Hate to burst your bubble, but fast reflexes wont do shit for you now!” The villain exclaimed, charging at Midoriya once again.

This time, Midoriya barely had time to react, to actually react, and Lida hadn't been there yet to protect him, so it was time to get serious. 

“No shit,” he said, subconsciously feeling bad for having said ‘shit’. Before the enemy came at him again, he thought of something in his mind. He pictured perfectly the image of an egg inside of of microwave, and focused on that. While the villain was charging, he noticed that the villain attacking with his left arm made his right side open. He also began to pick up the pace towards the enemy. 

“Remember… the egg!!!” He exclaimed, running full speed towards the enemy. 

“PITIFUL WEAKLING!!!” The villain exclaimed, starting to swing the scythe with all his might. 

It a split second, Midoriya moved out of the scythes way and saw a clear shot at the villains right side opening. “THE EGG… SMMMMMASH!!!” he exclaimed, getting a perfect punch into the villains right ribs. His punch was strong enough to produce gusts of wind flying from it, and the nearby trees in the area started to rumble. As perfect as the punch was though, he realized something was wrong. He felt that the enemy in front of him was undoubtedly unconscious, but he felt sharp stings coming from his arm. 

“No… way…” he said in disbelief, slowly looking down at his arm. Before he could allow himself to feel terrified, another weapon was swung at his head and barely missed, cutting off a few strands of his hair.

Another group of villains had come over, now ranging from about 10 or more people, and they begun to crowd around Midoriya.

“Ugh…” He cried, getting ready to fight with the next wave of enemies, although his arm was started to throb with pain. Before anyone had the chance to attack though, Iida came flying in, literally, and threw a kick strong enough to knock over 3 enemies. 

“You did it again didn’t you” he spoke harshly, looking at Midoriya’s arm.

Midoriya clenched his fists and responded. “I… Im fine. Besides, heroes are supposed to have a multitude of tricks, aren't they!?” He yelled, smiling ferociously. Suddenly, from above, a bright object came flying down from the sky, and knocked an enemy on the head before it came to be held by Midoriya. 

“How…”

“Uravity” Midoriya answered quickly. That's when the fun really began, and they spent the next 30 minutes picking off the rest of the enemies. 

\---------  
“Thank you.. Thank you!!!” Was all Iida and Midoriya heard while they waited for soldiers to come and rescue the people who were being held captive. Iida was, of course, being respectful and politely shaking hands with the people, but Midoriya was being ambushed by hugs and thanks. 

“I was so… scared.. Everything they talked about.. I… I…” one of the victims was trying to speak, but fell victim to their tears. Midoriya wrapped them in a hug. 

“I understand, but please do not worry any further,” he spoke calmly. The person looked up to them and dried a few of his tears before grabbing Midoriya’s hand. 

“B-because… you’re here” he said during a sob. 

Midoriya's heart thumped loudly. “Exactly.” he said, smiling and holding the person's hand to his heart.

\---------  
“So there was a total of 16 kidnapees, 12 children and 4 teenagers. All seem to be from different parts of the kingdom, but a majority are from the villages that are furthest south from here. There is no doubting that a large organized ring of villains might be operating in those areas, therefore we will increased the amount of soldiers stationed there and have larger groups of them patrol the area heavily, during day and night.” Iida quickly informed Midoriya while they were in the carriage. Midoriya seemed down, though.

“I’m sorry I had to make you wait here, but I promise all of those children are now in safe hands. Now in regards to the villains, none of them have gained consciousness yet. Tomorrow some of the members from my squadron will go to them and interrogate them with the police, and hopefully we will get more leads. Hopefully some of the older victims will also be able to give us some information, but only if they are fine with doing so. I will also inform you about other news that came up after we return and you get patched up. I don't even want to look at the damage you did to your arm, but it must not be bad since you're still conscious.” Iida finished. 

Midoriya looked sadder, though. “A penny for your thoughts, your highness?”

Midoriya finally looked up. “They were barely children,,, who knew how long they were held captive… trauma like this can certainly cause them to…” he trailed off, being unable to finish.

“Trauma that could have certainly been escalated had it not been for your courageous heart and sudden journey. I often tell you this because I'm obligated to, but today you truly shone like a hero and a prince, though an irrational one at that.” Iida told him, smiling. 

The prince sighed. “We got all of their names, right?”

“Correct.”

“If possible… I’d like all of them, as well as their residences. I’d like to write letters… and stay in touch with them.”

This was the courageous but irrational prince, worrying about someone they had no obligation to worry about, but still bothered themselves to. A prince that Iida was proud to serve.

"Oh Iida," Midoriya suddenly spoke, "The pub earlier seemed... rather crowded for that time of the day didn't it? I thought people were busier working... but it didn't seem like that at all."

Iida smiled. Another opportunity to praise the master. "You may not notice because we keep you in the castle away from outside influence, but because of your hard work in solving cases and preventing small things such as robberies and organized illegal monopolies that affect the economy, there is more wealth in the kingdom. The people do not have to work as hard, and as a result, more enjoy doing idle activities such as eating out and traveling."

Midoriya smiled. Ah, I see." he beamed. "Well, when I return, I'll make sure to work twice as hard for them."

“Yes, your highness” Iida smiled. “Now… regarding the real world… I suggest you plan what you will say to the king. Not so much to convince him not to kill you, but rather to convince the other lords, caucuses and committees to not throw you out of the castle.”

“Iidaaaaa…” Midoriya began. “My faithful servant, the one who puts up with all of my antics and gags… the protector of my soul-”

“Sorry, I cannot help you this time. You’re old enough to start weaseling out of hardships on your own. Consider this as me pushing you out of the nest.”

“That's a cruel way of putting it,” Midoriya mumbled. He grew silent after that, pondering which selection of words will cause the least amount of punishment for him.


	2. Immature Prince

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Midoriya is faced with a new hurdle introduced to him by the king. Reunions with his companions in the castle are sweet, but the announcement of an important event and a mysterious dream leave Midoriya exhilarated with questions.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello again! Thank you for tuning into the next chapter of this journey! Five characters will be introduced this time around, and lots of helpful background information is explained to further the depth of this story. That being said, please enjoy!

“Technically I was on a break…”

“No, you were not. You merely excused yourself and it seemed natural enough to not have someone watch you while you went to relieve yourself. I feel… disappointed.” the King explained, sighing heavily from the other side of the room. 

Midoriya clenched his fists, an act that would usually be reprimanded but for now, he's in the safety of the kings private quarters, where only the presence of Iida, his royal guard, accompanied them. Here, they could express their true emotions rather than suppress them for the sake of a Lord or Judge.

“All Might…”

“Young man, it’s been long enough since you first came into the castle. Please practice and get used to calling me the proper name, even when we’re alone. Slip ups from now on will just cause uneasiness towards you.”

Midoriya sighed. He knew he had the bad habit of speaking casually to All Might. He never remembered being scolded for it when he was younger, and even after he agreed to become All Mights successor, he never meant malice in addressing him casually. But now that he was older, now that things seemed to be going in serious directions, he knew casual-talk and idle unroyal activities would start to come to an end.

“I never meant to disappoint you. I simply wanted to take a stroll outside, but you know I… couldn't just leave it at that. The men we fought, I had heard them mentioning guarding a ‘post’ for wealth while I was walking around the village, and I know you, you out of everyone here in this castle, understands that I couldn’t leave after hearing that.” His attempt to convince the king that his actions were correct were feeble, but in Midoriya’s case, being honest usually helped him in his favor.

“Besides… I know you hate ‘what-ifs’, but what if I hadn’t gone that night? What would have happened to those sixteen innocent children…” Midoriya was going for sympathy now.

All Might just sighed again, this time heavier. “I understand very well, but it's simply not your duty to put yourself in harm’s way anymore.”

He walked around the room, observing the scenery outside, the distance outlines of busy villages appearing in the distance.

“Young Midoriya, please come stand by me.”

Midoriya gulped, but approached All Might calmly.

All Might stayed quiet for a few moments, but eventually faced Midoriya. 

“Look, I know you feel like you were caught in a pinch, but let me enlighten you. Suppose the moment you had suspicion of them, you went and told the nearest soldier. You were in the Garahi village weren’t you? According to protocol, there should’ve been at least five soldiers patrolling around the area. Within minutes, the rest of the guard would have been alarmed, and then they could have taken care of it. Besides, in case they needed more help, there is always a messenger at ready at their base, isn’t there? One messenger per base, and one base per twenty acres of land… there were more than enough reinforcements to handle what you and Iida did.”

All Might didn’t notice, but Iida silently winced when he heard his name.

“What lets me down even more is that the one who came up with all of the patrols and bases, the one who should know all of this even better than I do, is…”

“Me.” Midoriya answered. It was true, most of the patrols were created and proposed by him. His vast knowledge on the entire layout of the kingdom allowed him to place bases, patrols, and soldiers in areas that would ensure the protection of each square foot of land.

“Exactly. That’s why you took so long on your expeditions before settling down here, correct?”

“Actually, your Highness,” Iida began to interject, “if I may, perhaps it might be time to update those plans? The young master did not know where we were until I told him-”

“Iida,” Midoriya spoke, interrupting him and facing him before he continued, “I’m sorry, but that was a lie. I did know where we were… in fact I was only able to find them because I knew I was.”

He turned back to All Might now. “You’re right, your highness. I should’ve avoided the conflict, but I didn’t. I’m sorry.”

‘There you go’ All Might thought. He extended a hand and patted Midoriya's hair. “There’s the answer to your what-ifs, young man. The kingdom has seen more peaceful days since you joined me at my side. True, you work faster than a whole squadron of soldiers and guards, but as a king, you must learn how to depend on people. Surprisingly, not everyone is out to get us.” All Might chuckled a bit. Midoriya was trying to the fact that he was sulking, though it couldn't have been missed at all. 

“Listen… if the burden of being my successor is too...”

He didn’t finish because Midoriya knew exactly what he was gonna ask, and those were words he could not dare let come out of All Might’s mouth. “N-No! Not at all! Your Highness I…” he tried to continue speaking but he felt the weight of the sentence All Might was trying to say. Suddenly in his mind, all of his training came up. All of the tasks he had done for All Might, all the cases he solved, all the sleepless nights trying to think of ways to be useful for All Might, the smiling faces of everyone in the pub he visited the day before. 

“The burden is grand, I will not lie. But I am prepared to face it all, all of the downsides that come with it as well. I know my inexperience is no excuse to act as rashly as I do now, but my dedication has its own shortcomings, which I wish- no, will fix before you chose to retire.

You chose me, and for that I cannot express how thankful my soul is for it. I regret my actions, and pray that someday, I will truly be someone the Kingdom can wholly respect and support, as it does for the great current King.”

All Might processed everything for a minute, and the room was still and quiet enough to hear everyone's heartbeats in the air. Finally, All Might smiled.

“That sounded much more noble than anything you’ve said in the past.” He spoke slowly, admiring Midoriya. “I think with that you may even acquire mercy from the judges. Nonetheless, words are nothing if they are not accompanied by actions, therefore you are to start learning about the deep history of our kingdom, as well as our neighbors. I came to this decision along with the court after I heard about the incident. You seem to yearn to learn about the outside world, and now you will be able to do so in a manner that is respected by myself and the court.

This is an important step in your graduation to become a proper King, take this experience with pride and give it all you got. A King must be equally smart and he is physically capable.”

Harsh… Midoriya thought, but not as harsh as he expected. After all, he wasn’t the successor to any old royal King. This was All Might, the strongest King of all the neighboring kingdoms, the King who made the word ‘Hero’ as important as the word ‘King’. Simply standing by him is considered a great honor.

“Very well, your Highness.” 

“Good, young Midoriya. Now all formalities aside, you used your power, successfully??” All Might suddenly asked, looking at Midoriya’s right arm.

Midoriya glanced at his arm. “Oh! Yes I did! It still hurt a lot, but I was still able to use it to swing my sword around. The villain was knocked out cold immediately. I don’t think the egg in the microwave is going to sustain me mentally anymore though, I need a new way of visualizing my power. I just don’t know what, yet.” he sighed. He looked out at the brilliant bright clouds outside, contrasting beautifully against the bright blue sky.

“Well, I’m afraid you’ll have to continue not knowing. In addition to your lessons, the guards are strictly required to keep an eye on you all the time… ALL the time… so there's really no way for you to secretly practice your quirk without the certain risk of you being seen. Your attitude and time will determine when you will be able to do so again.” 

Midoriya sighed, But All Might perked up and grabbed him by the shoulders. “Young man, do you remember the words I spoke to you long ago, when you appeared on my castle grounds long ago?”

Midoriya didn’t answer, but All Might knew he did. “This is your life. Your future. Nurture yourself to the fullest, and I am sure you will surpass even me when I am gone.”

“But… a world without you seems painful.” The prince said quietly. 

All Might stood up tall again. “Then… please hurry and catch up, so I may retire and watch you shine upon my kingdom for many years to come!”

This one sentence was all it took for Midoriya to come out of his temporary sadness. Of course it made a sense, to take over the throne before it demanded the last bit of life out of All Might. With this in mind, he saw a new, brighter future. One not overcome with the burdens of being royalty, but rather one that turns those burdens into opportunities to better his kingdom and those around him.

“Yes, All Might!!!”

With this newfound excitement, Midoriya and Iida hurried over to their resting quarters to wait for the next hurdle to present itself.

\-------

They found themselves in Midoriya's main residence, a room that was not shy of a grand hall. Instead of there being four walls like any room, there were actually six walls that allowed the room for bend and expand intricately. Large and neat furniture were spread alongside the walls, most of them seeming to big for a child of a small stature like Midoriya. The bed itself was set vertically against the wall to the far right, and took up 70% of the space between the two walls besides it. The room had a red, gold, and black theme, the patterns on the wall matching those three colors. Some hints of green were added once Midoriya started to live in it, since that was his favorite color. Beautiful and traditional art from their culture decorated the walls, along with sets of nightlights to brighten up the room when it got dark. Midoriya's favorite part was the circular skylight in the middle of his room, which shone perfect light into the room during late dawn. Sometimes it would even shine perfectly on a letter that was placed onto the wall that had Midoriya's bed against it, which read of words of encouragement from his mother. 

It had only been a year and a half, but he did terribly miss his mother. He usually was usually ultra busy and didn’t have time to think about how much he missed her, but on days like this when he seems to need an extra push of advice…

He made his way over to his dresser, and began to reminisce about memories that he remembered from long ago, long before he even knew about. 

\---------

“Izuku!!!! Izuku where are you!!!”

“Shhh mother” a small voice responded, coming from the side of the house. “I’m looking at something important” the voice added.

“Okay” Inko whispered, going outside to find her son. She came across him kneeled over and peering into the ground.

“Mother, look,” he pointed at a small hole in the ground, “No matter how many times I keep opening this hole, the ants are quick to repair it. They never give up,” he laughed a teeny bit, continuously watching the ants scurry around the hole to plug it up with dirty.

Inko crouched beside him. “Izuku, that’s not very friendly is it? Those poor ants work very hard. Look, even one of their soldiers came out.”

As she said that, a bigger looking ant did appear from the hole, and also began to pace around the dirt.

Midoriya felt a bit of shame. “Soorryyyy,” he told the ants, backing up and standing. 

Inko smiled at her son, noting his now dirty pants from kneeling on the dirt. She was slightly bothered, but rather focused on something else. “It’s amazing how quickly they respond to things, isn’t it Izuku? They’re kind of like us, working hard to protect each other. You’d be surprised at how long and beautiful their tunnels are, they never really stop working.”

The boys eyes suddenly brightened. “Ahh, really? I guess they do remind me of us, but the only one I know that never stops working is you mother. If everyone worked like you, I think our village would be as pretty as their tunnels!”

Inko smiled. Of all the children she knew, only Midoriya would be fascinated by ants. “My my,” she began to say, putting her hands around her hips, “do I really seem that busy to you?”

Midoriya hung his head, and focused on playing with his hands. “Well.... you’re always making really good food, or cleaning some area in the house… and going to places all over the kingdom… you’re way cooler than anyone else in this kingdom!”

Inko began to laugh, pulling Midoriya into a tight hug. “One day, you’re gonna be even cooler than me, Izuku.” she praised. Midoriya was able to lean his head back to look at her. “But I think you're forgetting about someone even cooler than me.” she reminded him, allowing him to think for a few moments about who she was talking about.

“Cooler than you… oh, ALL MIGHT!!!” Midoriya exclaimed, breaking out of the hug and making enthusiastic noises as he ran about in the front of the house. 

She stay watching over him for a few minutes until one of the neighbors came over to speak to her. “Good afternoon Inko,” they greeted, approaching closer until they stood next to Inko, “Was that little Midoriya speaking? It’s amazing how much he can speak for his age, he’s only five isn’t he? My little boy can barely ask me for food and water,” they finished laughing. 

“Honestly…” Inko replied, still keeping watch on Izuku. “I suppose it's my fault for going away so often, he has to keep himself busy somehow.” 

The neighbor suddenly turned to face Inko, with curious eyes. “You mean, he’s picked up the habit of studying on his own?”

Inko hadn’t really thought of it like that, she just started to converse with him regularly, and now they have full blown conversations about the news that surrounds the village and the progress of their growth.

“...Unintentional loneliness is a great teacher… and I mean, his father did leave behind a pleasant supply of books and diagrams…”

The neighbor smiled at her, and then continued to watch over Midoriya as well. “He really takes after you, huh? You know, I’d say he’s worthy to present to the castle.”

Inko suddenly blushed. “He’s… too young.”

“You mean perfect.”

Giving her child away to the castle? Surely he’d live a wonderful and lavish life, but she liked him there. With her. Her sunshine, the new muse of her life. Rather, he is her life. Plus, there's no denial that he could end up governing their village anyways and build strong relations with the neighboring villages. Either way, she knew his influence would spread to anyone and everyone.

“I'll see you later Inko, I think I left my broth cook for too long.”

“Oh but you've only been here for a minute.”

“I know… truthfully i’ve passed my time limit. Inko,” she faced Inko and adorned a serious expression on her face, “I’m not only trying to flatter him, I’m telling you as a warning, I worry about his safety.”

“... I see,” Inko stood quiet for a moment. This is a problem that always lingered in her subconscious, the fear that someday Midoriya would be abducted. She was lucky that he didn’t mind staying nearby or at home, therefore not bringing much attention to himself, and she had good relations with her neighbors and they kept on eye on him. But still, evil never rests. Constant worrying never proved to be bad.

Then she was left alone, the words of her neighbor staying fresh in her mind.

Later that week, for reasons unknown, Midoriya was packing a bag with some changes of clothes that his mother was handing him. 

“Where are we going now, mom?” he asked, neatly sorting everything into his bag. He made sure to squeeze in some of his current favorite novels, as well as some paper and a quill.

“Have you read about the castle yet, Izuku?” she asked him slowly, now preparing her own bag of items.

“Of course!! That’s where All Might lives!!” he responded proudly. “Mother, I also noticed something, about the ants.”

“What would that be, dear?”

“I read that the reason they work so hard is to protect their queen,” he began to explain, “But us,” he continued, “we work hard, but doesn’t All Might work harder? I always hear news about him here and there, never in the castle. You said we are like ants, but I don’t think so.”

Too precious. Too smart. Surely the world would see him as a strong individual, and ally that would be useful to everyone, especially the king. He already was starting to understand the basics of a kingdom and how its run, and how different theirs is compared to the others. Surely, in a year or so, he would understand how the royals and public benefit each other, and the important roles of each party in the relationship. His future outlined him as a scholar in the castle…. Or even a respected diplomat. 

But staying at her side as well… he could be happy like that too. Or would she only be the happy one?

“You’re right, dear.” she responded. “His Highness works hard for you and I, and for everyone else.”

“Exactly,” Midoriya beamed, “thats why someday, I want to help All Might! I wonder how though?? I can be… a soldier! Or or… a royal guard! Or maybe even his personal aid! Or….”

“Oh, Izuku.” Inko breathed, wrapping her son into a tight hug. “Our trip to the castle couldn’t be any more convenient…”

And she was right. Midoriya saying something so bold, at such a young age, at such a trivial time. Perhaps it really was a sign from the lords up above.

\--------

“Iida, hug me.” Midoriya suddenly demanded. But he received no hug, and looked up to notice that Iida was spaced out starring outside instead. 

“Iida, you’ve done nothing but sigh since we came back from All Might’s room.” Midoriya noted, preparing to change out of his formal meeting apparel. Two aids rushed to help him, but he smiled and put his finger up to his lip. Basically telling them to pretend like he wasn’t there. It had been about a year and a half since he moved into the castle and was expected to accept all the pampering and babying that the life of a royal offered, but all of it was still foreign to him. Perhaps if he had given in the ideals long ago, he wouldn't have to be reminded and bothered by it again and again.

Iida poured himself a glass of water from a pitcher that sat on one of the nightstands in the room. He took a long lengthful drink, almost downing the entire glass. 

Midoriya awkwardly continued. “Are you… nervous? Or…”

After a few more moments. Iida finally responded. “I'm just astonished at how you get away with everything… I have a very troublesome prince,” he sighed, “But I really favor the outcome, you’re getting your wish of being able to explore without having to break the castle rules. Perhaps I will finally be at peace.” Once finished, Iida strolled over to one of the couches, sitting looking pleased with himself. 

“Actually… I think it might have the opposite effect, “ Midoriya confessed, “Reading about everything that’s out there is only going to make me want to see it even more. What if I read about other quirks out there? I have heard the rumor that only those with royal blood ties are the ones with them. If so, what are they and how do they use them? Ahh Iida honestly just thinking about it is getting me riled up.” He did some sort of pouty dance that only earned a small laugh from Iida.  
“His Highness has shown you enough mercy already, please focus on the promise you made him and actually try to conform to this royal lifestyle. You’re honestly lucky the public hasn’t been notified about you being the new successor. They’d tear at your recklessness, rashness, irrationality, ability to get easily swooned, inability to obey common rules, odd fashion sense…”

“Funny, just last night you were praising me with the sweetest words, and now you attack all of my being, including my ‘odd’ fashion sense.”

Iida stared at him.

“Okay… I mean I guess… I just naturally opted for clothes that resembled my clothes from back then, but I guess the fabrics and designs just don't quite cut it.” 

Midoriya had, in fact, noticed that his selection of clothes painfully stood out more than he could bring himself to accept. His old clothes, the ones he used for travel, were very light and simple. Any colors and any styles would match and compliment him, but castle clothes are way more intricate. Matching patterns was more difficult than he thought. 

“Not to mention how the aids get scolded for it everyday. Since you haven't had the courage to explain that you voluntarily dress yourself in such a weird way, they get chewed out for making you look like… that”

Suddenly a realization came upon Midoriya. “You don’t mean… is that why theres new ones every so often?”

“Exactly.”

Midoriya let out a loud grown. “Oh my…. Iida…. I feel so bad… I didn’t know… this has been going on for a year and a half? And now you’re barely telling me??”

“You may have not noticed but I show you the same mercy that the King does. But now, although I understand you are 15 and young, I will be harsher on you and teach you how to accept the help that is offered to you at this castle. Although you usually reject or pass up on things because of your kind nature, it is actually offensive to the workers. It’s exactly as high highness said, you need to learn how to depend on people other than myself and him. People’s whole lives basically revolve around you now, so not being able to serve you is like… unfulfilling and disappointing.”

He stopped to look at Midoriya, or rather to see if the prince was even listening, and was met with an almost blank expression. 

Sighing, he knew he had to explain it another way, “It’s as if his highness gave you that quirk, and the instructed you to never use it, even know using it was obviously the way to learn about it and nurture it.”

“Oh that's terrible!”

Iida rolled his eyes, which earned a small ‘hmph’ from Midoriya. “Unfortunately this childishness must also end. Technically you are an adult now, the amount of patience people have for you will begin to decrease as you get older.”

“I just mean… his highness seems so… burdened by influences that shouldn't even be instructing him what to do. In a way, he seems bounded by all these chains coming from people who don't deserve them. Our kingdom is one of the most thriving and peaceful since I came, isn’t it? Shouldn’t that lessen the demand for formalities? Instead I am noting that we are kept in place by even more rules. “

“Excuse me, your highness, but I cannot allow you to become ignorant. The kingdom was peaceful before thanks to His Highness, but its just gotten more peaceful thanks to you. All credit where it is owed.”

“Sorry… It’s just… exhausting just thinking about it.”

“If you were okay with being pampered and following the rules, you’d have a much more positive outlook. But I understand you don’t, you’re very different the princes in the other kingdoms who were born into royalty. But don’t you dare look down because of that fact. I’m sure you were chosen by his highness because you are different. You were raised amongst the kingdom. Because of that, you get to compare the life that you have now versus the life you had previously. When you’re king, you will be able to look at situations with not only a royal and formal view, but also a human view that understands how it might impact the people of the kingdom. Personally speaking, I believe that is a one of a kind trait, your highness.”

“Praising me… insulting me… praising me again… pick your side.”

“I guess today is a confusing day for the both of us, isn’t it?”

Midoriya grunted. Instead of responding properly, he jumped onto his bed, face down first.

“It’s too early to turn in for the night your highness,” Iida interjected. shall we give Uraraka and Mei a visit? I believe your sword looked rather scuffed after out duel…”

Immediately, Midoriya perked up. “I would like that very much.”

\-------  
“Yes, please let the guards know that we are going to visit Uraraka in the blacksmith section of the castle.” Iida told an aid that was standing by their room.

“Oh come on,” Midoriya pouted, continuing to walk. “Is that really going to become the new norm?”

“Thanks to you, yes,” Iida responded. 

Eventually they met up with the famous blacksmith Mei first, who welcome them warmly into her work area. Once they stationed themselves comfortably, both men began to explain what had gone down in the last two days.

“Ehh?? You actually used it??” Mei chimed in, glancing at Midoriya's arm. “Well, that would explain the bulkiness of your sleeve,” she said as she examined his arm closer. 

“Ahh, you can tell?” Midoriya responded, suddenly flustered because of how close Mei got to him.

“I mean, I do have an eye for any teeny tiny detail” she explained. “You should know now though, shouldn’t you? How well did my baby serve you?” she asked excitedly, prompting Iida to hand over the scuffed sword.

“It worked fabulously, the finest specimen yet,” Midoriya complimented, remembering how easily it was able to dice his opponents. A rough memory, but a proud one at that.

“Awesome!” was all she said before throwing it into the large container of melted iron that was near them. 

Midoriya’s eyes almost popped out of his head. “Eh?? Eh??? MEI!” he cried, watching the sword turn into the same melted substance that was mixing in the container.

Mei patted his back. “Now now, your highness. It was old anyways!”

“Y...You gave it to me right before I left, two days ago.”

“Exactly! And you informed me that it served you well, which means it’s okay to give you this next one!”

She ran over to the other side of the room, and pulled out another large object from a barrel of what seemed to be water. She quickly dried it off with a black towel, and then rushed over back to the men. 

“Behold, my new newest baby!” she announced, holding a brilliant sword up to Midoriya.  
It was so clean and pristine that it actually reflected a beam of light that was peering into the room. The blade side looked as sharp as ever, sharp enough to cut some awful images into anybody's mind. The blunt side was much more docile though, bearing some beautiful art and marks that was carved lightly into the metal. The most surprising detail, though, was that it appeared to have two handles. One seemed to be the original handle that could be held, but the other beared two sharp edges, looking like a mini version of the sword. Underneath it was Midoriya's alias, Deku, a detail that might be dismissed by anyone who sees it, since it’s a secret name after all. He was smiling so hard that his cheeks started to hurt.

“Well??” Mei prompted, handing it over and then giving him a light push. “Please try it out, your highness.”

Once it was in his hands, he moved further away from Mei and Iida to execute a proper swing. It made a dashing whooping sound once he did, and he gave it a few more swings.

“It's so light!” he exclaimed, moving it around some more.

“I’m glad you noticed” Mei chimed in again. “I mixed in a new metal that was found in one of the villages to the east. I know protocols demand that swords be pure iron to weigh more and deal more damage, but I figured since you’re pretty quick and you have raw strength at your side, you don’t need a bulky sword to do a great amount of damage. Plus, its more heat resistant! In case you run into any fire-breathing dragons!”

Midoriya practiced some more before he responded “Mei, there’s no such things as fire-breathing dragons…” and then decided to address the addition of the new sword-handle looking thing. “What’s the idea behind this, Mei?” he asked, pointing to it. 

“Oh. I don’t know if you remember, but once you explained that your quirk was like a double edged sword. So that’s what this is too, a double edged sword. The sword handle extends longer than your handle-handle, so it serves you for close combat.”

“That feels like cheating,” Midoriya admitted. “This is truly the most perfect sword I’ve ever wielded. Thank you… Mei.”

She was beaming brightly. 

Suddenly, scurrying was heard outside, and Iida’s name was being called loudly.

“Iidaaaa! Iidaaaaa!” Uraraka yelled, entering the room. She quickly composed herself, and then greeted everyone in the room.

“Welcome back your highness!” she exclaimed, bowing down to Midoriya. “All the guards seem to know where you were at, which is strange. What happened since you came back?” she questioned. 

Midoriya explained how his secret journey landed him into the next step of becoming a royal, which was studying endlessly about the beginnings of their kingdoms as well as the ones around them.

“Ohhh,” Uraraka said loudly. “Guess we will be seeing the young master's cute scholar phase again, won't we Iida!”

“Uraraka please… I’m sensitive to.. Words like that” Midoriya sputtered, helplessly growing pink. “But essentially, yes. Oh by the way, the flying sword worked perfectly.”

Uraraka looked excited. “Please give me more details?”

“Well, you felt when I yanked it right?”

“Yes, that was when I released it.”

“Yeah, I had it so high in the air that it first fell on one of the villains head, to my favor, and then returned to my hand. It was pretty amazing, even Iida looked surprised for a second” Midoriya scoffed. 

“I'm glad to hear it worked out! I couldn’t bear soiling my name by causing the death of the new prince.” she snickered. 

The flying sword was something that they both initially came up with to have a good laugh, but ended up becoming a reality. Uraraka applied her zero-gravity quirk on the sword, and Midoriya kept is suspended in the sky above him with a tiny thread wrapped around his wrist. Uraraka could feel the presence of the sword so long as she kept the object in her mind, and when the tug was felt, Uraraka would then release her quirk. This required a great deal of mental preparation and application on Uraraka part, but she didn’t mind so long as it benefitted the prince.

“So it’s really a one time thing huh,” she said rather disappointedly.

Mei suddenly chimed in, again again, “Would you like me to come up with something to help that??”

“Hmm…” Midoriya began to think out loud. “I mean, it’s only really useful if I want to appear armless somewhere to win pity or have someone underestimate me, but I think it’s more useful if I use it to suspend food and supplies above me to not have that weight on me while I travel-”  
Iida then made his presence in the room known again, going ‘Hmmmm?’ without ever opening his mouth. Midoriya quickly stopped his yammering. “I-I mean it’s not like I’ll be going out anytime soon, perhaps this experimenting will be done at a more appropriate time.”

Uraraka caught on. “Understood, Mr. House Arrest.” Before Midoriya could complain about her tease, she began to leave. “Oh, also, the King requests your presence again, your Highness.”

“Huh? Again?” Midoriya asked, questioning Iida. “We literally just came back from there-”

“Well, it seemed urgent.”

“... Very well. Ugh. This means I have to get dressed up again, doesn’t it…” he muttered, walking out of the shop alongside Iida and Uraraka. 

“Cheer up, young master” Iida spoke, wrapping his arm around Midoriya. “Now would be an excellent time to let the aids dress you.”

“Yayyy….” Midoriya said unenthusiastically. “Oh,” he said quickly, turning to face Mei who was watching them leave. “Thank you very much Mei. Your work was as amazing as always. Your new device will surely earn me much respect in the future. Please remember to rest in amongst the creations of your ‘babies’.” Midoriya smiled at her, and she bowed. 

“Very well, your Highness.”

\--------

“A… royal… ball?” Midoriya questioned. “Did you get threatened once we left? Where is this coming from?” Midoriya questioned frantically.

All Might chuckled a little. “Relax, my boy. I just figured that it’d fit along well with your new studies. Royal balls are a way to expand one’s knowledge about other kingdoms. They are filled with current and future influential figures.” All might finished explaining. He looked over at Midoriya, and noticed something veeery different. “You look very good.” he complimented, staring at how perfectly his outfit matched with him and each other.

So Midoriya had accepted Iida’s suggestion to let the aids dress him for their meeting. To say it was uncomfortable was an understatement, but he made it through it. Besides, the outcome was well worth it, Midoriya even felt better after he looked at himself in the mirror. 

“Ah… um… thank you, your Highness,” Midoriya bowed.

“Anyways,” All Might continued, “The princes from the kingdoms to our south and west are also about your age. Hopefully they agree to come, and you’ll be able to observe them.”  
Midoriya suddenly felt very nervous, and a bit light-headed. “Your Highness, you don’t mean-”

“No no, I won’t introduce you as my successor yet, don’t worry. I meant you’ll attend as my aide, and listen to the conversations that I initiate with anyone I deem will be important to you in the future.”

Midoriya let go of his breath and exhaled slowly. “Alright, I’m glad.”

A knock on the door interrupted their conversation. “Your Highness.” a voice spoke from behind it.

All Might nodded at Iida, and the door was opened to reveal one of All Might’s closest guards, Ojiro. 

“Your Highness,” Ojiro announced again, bowing lightly. “The court requests your presence again to discuss the matters of Prince Midoriya’s new study schedules.”

“Very well.” All Might responded. “Izuku, Iida, you are dismissed.”

“Yes, your royal Highness.” Midoriya and Iida said together, bowing deeply and then exiting the room to rest back in Midoriya’s room.

“Suddenly, I feel like I’m going to be anxious for the next couple of months.” Midoriya sighed. It’s not like he has no idea about what or how royal banquets are, but the idea of being amongst all that formality and royalty left a certain uneasiness in his mind.

The aids picked at his clothes, dressing him in night clothes since dusk was nearly over.

“Oh cheer up. Maybe you’ll even meet somebody you like, All Might said so.” Iida teased.

“T-Thats not what he meant!” Midoriya exclaimed.

Midoriya spent the next couple of hours doing a variety of things in his room. Iida excused himself to meet with the rest of this squadron and practice with them since he was gone with Midoriya.

Quietness is both useful and frightening, because it brings along all the thoughts that quitely reside under the vocalized thoughts of the individual throughout the day.

Rigours history lessons… preparing for a royal ball… becoming dependant on others… not being able to use his quirk....

Midoriya waved off these newfound worries and finished writing in his journal. He flopped onto his humongous bed, and stared at the letter from his mother that was above his head. “Mom….” he whispered, slowly allowing himself to fall victim to the waves of drowsiness that paraded around in his head.

He didn’t dream very much, and when he did, he could barely remember a fraction of what the dream consisted of in the morning. This one though, seemed to have an impression on him even while he slept. 

It was him, himself, running in a vast field of vivid green grass and flowers that decorated the ground below him. ‘Where am I going?’ he asked himself as he ran. He heard the faint calls of a tender voice in the background, and suddenly he found himself in a large room. 

“Izuku…” the tender voice called. 

‘Mother…?’ Midoriya thought, walking over to the other side of the room. He saw a figure that looked very much like his mother, and hurried over. The figure and himself embraced, and Midoriya felt pure tender love coming from the figure, so he assumed it was his mother. 

“I’m so happy you’re here for me,” he said, seemingly tearing up in her shoulder. “I….” he began to say, but was cut off when a loud noise filled the room. 

Before he knew it, flames dances around the room, decorating the walls in brilliant colors of red and yellow. For some reason, he wasn’t afraid though, and stayed clinging onto the figure as he observed the fires. 

The figures hands cupped his face, and he finally looked up to observe who it was, to prove to himself that it was his mother and not a cruel joke his mind was playing on him.

Much to his surprise, it wasn’t Inko, nor All Might, nor Iida; three figures that Midoriya knew he loved and they loved him back. Rather, he was staring at a headful of white and… red hair? 

In his mind, he knew this wasn’t anyone he knew, and warned himself to separate from the stranger. But those thoughts of worry and malice disappeared almost at an instant, and he felt that same tenderness from the beginning of the dream. Surely this was no nightmare. 

“Love…” the other figure said slowly, carefully, affectionately. 

“Who-” Midoriya began to ask, but he was no longer staring at the figure. Instead, his eyes only adjusted on the patterns on the roof of his bed.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Pure friendships? Pure parent-son-ships? I'm all for it ;u;  
> Hope you enjoyed the introduction of KING All Might, Inko-mama, Ochako-chan, Ojiro-san, and my beloved Mei. 
> 
> Also to recap: so far we know he was introduced to the castle when he was 4  
> He officially moved into the castle when he was 13 and a half.  
> What happened in those 9 years?
> 
> Proper History Lessons?  
> A Royal Ball?  
> A Dream regarding some white and red-haired boy?  
> What's in store for our beloved Deku in the future?
> 
> Until next time lovelies, PLUS ULTRA!!


	3. Twist of Fate

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Midoriya finally regains enough consciousness to ponder about the details from last night's dream, inevitably focusing on the stranger he was seemingly holding onto. He hides these thoughts deep in his mind and continues to move forward and face new hardships that are presented to him each day, including vigorous history lessons, accepting his role to be dependent on others, and the absence of freedom. Also, a familiar figure somehow wounds up in the castle?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Welcome back beauties! Boy does this chapter have a lot of new scenarios and situations, but entertaining ones at that.  
> A small preview: sparring Midoriya, specifications about the royal ball, villain business, and a run-in with someone unexpected.  
> Enjoy!

A hint of light peered inside from the skylight, and just barely helped illuminate the sky along with the moon. It was very early dawn, the sun hadn’t risen from the other side of the world yet, but it was getting closer and closer.

Midoriya lay semi-unconscious, realizing his body had yet to wake up and accompany his eyes. For now, all he could do was listen to the echo of the last word that had been spoken in his dream. 

‘Love…. love… love… love… mother.’ he repeated in his head again and again and again. He attempted to move his fingers, but to no avail. He sighed, again in his mind, and just lay still, analyzing the room as he noticed it was slowly starting to get brighter. Besides experiencing a strange dream, the situation wasn’t all bad for Midoriya. He actually enjoyed being able to wake up during the early, wee small hours of the morning. 

Everything and everyone seemed so perfectly still, even time seemed to stop for moments at a time. The hint of grey that decorated the sky allowed the moon and sun to see each other, reuniting them for a short, sweet moment. 

Finally, his finger seemed to twitch, and eventually he was able to rotate his wrists. Soon enough, he sat up in bed and gently rubbed his eyes. He jumped out of bed almost immediately, and began to write in his journal.

“Field of healthy grass… room covered in flames… stranger with white and red hair…” he mumbled to himself, quickly scribbling words as soon as they popped into his head. When he felt satisfied with the amount of details he covered, he sat back into his chair and sighed. A light knock sounded at his door.

“Iida?” he called, standing up to get closer to the door. 

“Yes, your highness.” Iida responded. 

“Oh, come in.” Midoriya spoke, walking back towards his bed.

“Apologies for disturbing you so early, young master, but I heard you suddenly jump out of bed. Is everything alright?”

Midoriya thought for a moment, sitting down on his bed and contemplating whether or not he should explain his dream to Iida. Iida’s loyalty to him was not questioned in the slightest, but Midoriya felt that this dream was like… a potential weak spot to himself and those around him. The last thing a prince, a king, needs is weak spots.

“I just saw my mother's face in my dream for a quick second.” he explained. ‘Sorry Iida’, he thought. ‘You really don’t need to know about this’  
Iida adjusted his glasses. “I see, nothing to worry about then?”

“Not in the slightest.” Midoriya quickly responded, and threw in a late smile. His hands stayed folded in his lap, and he continued to stare down at a floor, an obvious pose that asked ‘Can you help me?’

“Well your highness, are you going to try to go back to sleep? My men and I are going to practice sparring in a few minutes. Please do not hesitate to join us if you are unable to go back to sleep.”

‘Thanks Iida’. “That sounds exciting, I’m in.”

\--------

Although it was too early for Midoriya to have the courage to allow aids to dress him again, here he was, in another astonishing outfit. He did enjoy that they seemed to match the clothes with his favorite color, green. Todays shirt was a short-sleeved forest green tunic, which had gold and black embellishments decorating the neck, ends, and lower sleeves of the shirt. He wore a beige simple long sleeve underneath, since it was still quite early and cold. His pants were also a simple black, and he wore boots that complimented the color of the long sleeve. 

When Midoriya entered the sparring room, all of the men present bowed instantly. “Good morning, your Highness!” They all yelled enthusiastically. Perhaps a little too enthusiastically. 

Midoriya's ears rang. “Good morning everyone. As you were.” 

With that, they all continued to get themselves warmed up and ready.

All of them paired, up and soon began to spar. Midoriya observed a couple of groups closely, examining how remarkable all of them seem to be. To someone who didn’t know the first thing about swordsmanship, they’d be astounded by all the movements they see and think that everyone fights the same way. That is the furthest thing from the truth, though. Compared to fights he’s seen outside, and the fights that he himself had been in, he noticed that this squadron seemed to add a variety of kicks into their routines. Undeniably the results of working with IIda.

“Amazed?” Iida suddenly taunted, coming up behind Midoriya.

Midoriya started to laugh a bit though. “I see you’ve been teaching them your ‘specialty moves’?” he questioned, biting his lip to prevent more laughter. He surely wasn’t making fun of them, but the uniqueness of it all just amused him.

“I mean, they’re not bad,” Iida offered. “Will you be joining the fray as well?”  
About an hour had passed, but Midoriya still felt groggy. It was barely like, six-thirty. “Not today, I don’t think,” he confessed. “All of this hard work is amazing, but I still feel half-asleep.” he added.

Iida nodded. “Understood, young master. I mean who could blame you? Waking up so early, practicing right now would definitely strain your young body-”

“Hand me a weapon.” Midoriya grunted, flashing a frightening stare at Iida. 

“Very well!”

\-------

The sparring only went on for about two more hours, and then everyone set off to bathe themselves and get ready for the day’s commands. Midoriya and Iida were in the same bathing quarters, or the ‘endless pit’ as Midoriya liked to refer to it. Midoriya began to prepare the supplies to scrub himself, but Iida quickly interjected. 

“The aids outside are supposed to help you with that,” Iida informed him. He expected some choking sounds and a flustered response in return, but all he got out of Midoriya was a grunt. 

“Don’t tell me you’re tired already…” Iida trailed off, relaxing to the steady flow of the water that was continuously flowing into the bath.

Midoriya began to scrub himself clean. “I’m fine,” he responded. Truthfully, he was actually still thinking about the dream earlier. Everything was too… clear and pristine to be some random scenarios thrown together by his brain. 

Iida obviously saw this confusion in Midoriya's face, but resisted the instinctive urge to pry. Midoriya was no longer a child, it was time for him to decide what to tell or what not to tell to his allies. He must’ve been keeping the dream incident a secret for a reason.

“Anyhow, I advise you to clear your head soon because I heard the court will assign you your lessons this afternoon.”

“Ahhh… so soon?” Midoriya exhaled, dumping his head in the stream to rinse off his hair. 

“There appears to be… quite an amount of information to learn over the next three years,” Iida said hesitantly. 

Woah, wait. Three years?!

“I refuse to believe it!” Midoriya bellowed, though not in a frustrated way. He dumped himself into the bath water a few feet away from Iida. Ohh, how his body needed this. Usually he bathes every day, sometimes twice a day to keep up with his appearance since he ends up dirtying himself quite often, but the impromptu journey kept him from bathing for three days. He really couldn’t care less about that right now though. He followed Iida and began to relax to the same flow of constant water.

Lessons for three years… did they seriously intend to keep him locked up that entire time? Surely there will be times when he’s allowed to go outside to hear reports from the bases, or inspect the number of squadrons sent to them. 

The dream… the lessons… oh and the royal ball.

“It’s too much…” he cried, trying to relax his body since it got all stiff.

“Don’t worry too much, your highness,” Iida suddenly spoke. “We’ll take em’ as we get em’” he smiled at Midoriya, reassuring him. 

Iida rarely said uneducated expressions like ‘em’, so this made Midoriya perk up a bit. “You’re right,” he responded, raising his fist from the water and clenching it in front of him. “What I want to be seems so out of reach… but I’ll do whatever it takes to get there.”

‘That's it, my prince’ Iida thought, and together they just let the silence overcome them as they sunk further and further into the bath.

\--------

Far away, far far away, but not far far far away, stood an innocent looking house, sharing the outside of its walls with stems of leaves that nicely decorated it. The night was calm and cool, but the interior of the house was far from that.

“You’re telling me… all of them were overtaken and over run… by a BRAT and some GUARD???” 

“N-No Muscular sir… not just any brat and guard… but members from the royal castle guard, sir.”

The man trembled as muscular seemed to understand his words. “I don’t give a rats ass if they were from the castle or not, we had twelve people stationed over there! Including that huge mass of shit Golium! This is very obviously bullshit, I swear to the hellish underlord if you are lying about anything-”

“Sir please…” the small man responded. “I have no reason to lie to you. They’ve all been taken back to several bases to be interrogated. I...I’m lucky to have escaped in time and found you.”

Muscular scowled, further scaring the messenger. He only broke the stare to spit nearby. 

“Descriptions. Now.”

The small man jumped. “Yessir. The younger one, he had green curly hair that was about medium length. At first he looked like no serious trouble, but he managed to get just one hit on Golium and knocked him out cold. After that, when he began to fight off the rest, a sword dove down from the sky to help him.”

“Sounds like… quirks.” Muscular responded. “Go on.”

“The young one also had freckles on his face. His comrade called out to him once with the name ‘Deku’.”

“Deku…” Muscular repeated to himself. Didn’t ring any bells to him, and he thought he had most of the tabs on people who had quirks in the castle. Must’ve been someone new. “The other one… you mentioned ingenium correct?”

“Yes… I was able to identify him because he immediately started to use his engine calves on Milias and Tranquo. The pair together… were quite frightening if I’m being honest. I think even you would have trou-”

Loss of breath? “Choose your next words wisely” muscular breathed on him, tightening his grip by the millisecond.

“P-Please” the man choked out. To his surprise, Muscular actually obeyed.

“It’s odd that a royal guard was out, especially with the company of someone unknown. I have to let the boss know before-”

Three loud knocks were coming from the door. “We’re here to pick up some goods.” a voice behind it said.

“...Perfect timing,” Muscular grunted, headed towards the door, his upper body starting to grow massively. 

“Sir, you can’t, they’re our customers-”

“Not another word out of you, unless you want to join them in the depths of hell. Their money will keep us afloat until we find the boss.” Muscular spit out. He adjusted his composure and then walked swiftly to the door.

Not a sound was heard afterwards. Some leaves rustled against the dead corpses, but that was all.

\-------

Six Months Later….

\--------

Iida softly knocked on the door three times before letting himself in. “Your highness,” he called out, letting himself into the room.

All of the candles in the room were already lit, their flames bouncing happily among the darkness, and Midoriya lay curled up on the side of his bed. He was still in his casual attire. It seemed that the aids did not do a great job of convincing him to change before he fell asleep, to no surprise. Several months have passed since Midoriya agreed to start depending on others, which meant letting them bathe him, dress him, attend to his needs, and other pampering activities, but he still had hints of stubborness in him.

Iida looked over to his bedside desk, and saw a stack of books and reports organized into a messy pile. He sighed, ‘Again?’ he thought to himself as he walked over to Midoriya. 

This might get messy.

“Your highness,” Iida called out to him, gently shaking his shoulder. No response. “Midoriya,” he announced louder, tapping the princes’ forehead. He heard a small mumble now, and continued to poke at him. “Hey, come on now, let’s get you dressed properly so you can sleep.”

It looked like Midoriya tried to open an eye, but failed, and began to curl up even tighter than before. 

“No, you human caterpillar, I’m serious right now.”

Half-asleep, Midoriya found himself amused. “How…. meaannn….” he mumbled against his hands, starting to stretch out.

“Oh, your undeniably a masochist now. I will refrain from calling you anymore names since you enjoy it so much,” Iida chuckled quietly, waiting for Midoriya to gain a bit more consciousness before trying to make him sit up.  
Midoriya blinked slowly three times, and then started at Iida above him. “It’s just… amusing,” he confessed. He put out a hand and Iida took it, helping him sit up at the edge of the bed. 

“Here,” Iida said while he offered some clothes. “Just shimmey out of the top garment and put these pants on.”

The prince took the garment and began to do as instructed. But very slowly.

“I see you managed to finish?” Iida brought up, walking over to the desk and observing the hastily put-together stack of reports. He picked up the first one and opened it up, reading a few of the passages in it. Everything was perfectly worded, and finely written, to no surprise. Midoriya’s first attempt at this history reports were a bit wobbly. Better than any report from a soldier, or guard, but not to any royal calibre. Over the course of the last six months though, he vastly improved and writes even better than the King himself. It was nice to see the prince stick to the words he spoke to himself long ago, when all these new hurdles were suddenly presented to him. He’s definitely overcoming them. 

Iida looked at the backside to see which issue Midoriya had finished. It read ‘101th’. He blinked to himself and rubbed his eyes a bit before getting closer to a candle and reading the number again. It hadn’t changed, ‘101’. “Midoriya,” he called.

Midoriya was still sitting on the edge of the bed, barely, but in the proper clothes to sleep now. “Huh.”

“Is this a mistake?” Iida quickly asked, bringing the report over to Midoriya. Midoriya read the number and smiled. 

“Nope,” he simply said, and fell onto the bed.

“I...Impossible your highness… just last week you were on-”

“85,” Midoriya interrupted, trying to get under the covers.

“You mean to tell me, you finished a months-worth of reports in… a week??” Iida questioned louder. He picked up the rest of the reports, and sure enough, they all read ‘100th, 99th, 98th, 97th....’

Midoriya lazily pointed to his head. “I wanted to finish 100… before my… special…. D-” but he didn’t finish that sentence. The poor boy was knocked out.

Iida sighed. He had noticed that the prince seemed busier, but did not expect this outcome. It was amazing… even… dare he think... frightening. 

He walked over to the sleeping boy and patted his head. “Rest well, young master. I don't know if you can hear me, but I wish to say Happy Birthday. Please recover enough so we can celebrate tomorrow properly.”

With that being said, he walked around the room, extinguishing each candle one after another. When he was done, he went to pick up the reports so he could organize them and drop them off at All Mights office before All Might himself could get there. 

\-------

“Iida seriously… it’s already three in the afternoon. This is way passed ‘sleeping-in’!!”

“Uraraka please.... I’m sure he’ll wake up any minute, just continue to stand there, quietly.”

Uraraka obeyed. 

As Midoriya approached consciousness, more shuffling was heard around the room.

…..

He finally blinked an eye open.

“Happy Birthday, Prince Izuku!!!” all three of them in the room roared.

Midoriya's eyes first noticed the amazing array of colorful flowers that were placed all around the room, filling the air with the most fresh and pleasant aroma. They were quite literally everywhere, under each candle on the wall, a few bouquets on his desk, another on his nightstand, on top of his wardrobe, on his chest. Yeah, everywhere.

A few boxes that was among the flowers also stood out, each had some unique design on it and a neat ribbon.

But then he focused on the most important thing in the room, his closest friends and… the King??

“Y-Your highness!” Midoriya exclaimed, quickly jumping out of bed to bow down. Uraraka and Iida just eyed each other curiously.

All Might left out a hefty laugh, “Ha-ha-ha! Young Midoriya, I’m sorry for intruding, but there's no need for that now!”

Midoriya, flustered, managed to say “A-Ah, yessir!”. All Might continued to snicker.

He rubbed his eyes some more, and then focused on Iida and Uraraka. “You guys…” he muttered, walking over to hug them.

“Wow, I never expected to see Midoriya so formal and affectionate at the same time!” Uraraka exclaimed, hugging Midoriya bad tightly. 

“This is a first for me too… and I’ve woken him up many times before…” Iida muttered, but returning the hug equally tight. They stayed like that for a few seconds, until the dragged Midoriya close enough to All Might and let him go. 

The hug that followed was one of the most strongest, intense, and confusing ones Midoriya had ever accepted. All Might stretched his arms out, and Midoriya fell into them, hesitating at first.

“My my… you’re even afraid to hug me.” All Might let out in a disappointing tone, yet still squeezing tighter. “Happy Birthday, young Midoriya. Today marks the beginning of a remarkable era, one that revolves around you being accepted as an adult in the modern society, and as a candidate to become a ruler of the castle.” He felt Midoriya suddenly stiff up under him, and let his grip loosen slowly. “Again, you don't have to worry about being presented to the public or royalty outside of our castle, but still, personally, those things are true. Honestly…” All Might began to let him go, “I don’t understand why you get nervous about that. To me, you’re already fine enough to present as my successor, to everyone.”

Midoriya stretched a little after he was let go. Supposedly, All Might’s time and strength were running out as the days went by, but Midoriya still knew the raw power he was capable of calling out. It was, in fact, very scary.

“Not so much afraid, but I promised to learn how to respect you even more, right?”

“True,” All Might agreed, “But now that you have that down, you must also learn when it is appropriate to share informal feelings with others, such as how I’m doing now.”

Midoriya tilted his head. “Huh? Informal…? So first I was too informal… and now I’m being too formal… whyyyyy” he cupped his face with his hands. All Might laughed again.

“Your Highness, if you continue to laugh like that, you’ll be caught,” Iida whispered. 

“Oh dear, you’re right. Well, it’s time for me to sneak back. Somehow, I feel like I’ve learned this from you, young Midoriya. Anyways, I will see you later today,” he turned to Iida and Uraraka before he left, “please take very good care of him. Not that I don’t already know you will, but… it feels good to say it.”

“Very well, your Highness sir!” Uraraka and Iida said in union. All Might waved at all of them, and then quickly disappeared out of the room.  
“Busy day today, Midoriya!!” Uraraka bounced. “Oh, by the way, I heard about the reports. Is it true???”

Midoriya smiled and sat back down in his bed. “You know it.”

Uraraka swooned. “That’s our prince for ya! Then today, we can truly just focus on having fun. Like his Highness said, we will take care of you today! So let's get going!”

Iida began to speak as soon as she stopped though, “Uraraka… he only woke a few moments ago. Maybe he wished to stay in bed a little longer.”

Midoriya really wanted to do the opposite though, feeling oddly encouraged by Uraraka’s words, and stood back up. “No, she’s right Iida. Besides, it’s three already isn’t it? Let's get things started!”

And with that, he was dragged to the baths.

\-------

“Today, we will style your hair, your highness,” one of the aids, Tsu, told Midoriya. It was rare, but Midoriya really took a liking to her, particularly because of her innocent and easy-going vibe. He trusted her to do most things like helping put on his garments, choosing his jewelry, and styling his hair on special occasions, like today.

“Oh, before you continue with that, please use this,” Iida said to Tsu, handing Midoriya a box, who then opened it. “My first gift to you,” he announced shortly after.

It was a beautiful looking cylinder, probably shaven from a large piece of violet crystal, that had a cap which could be twisted off. The contents inside resembled some sort of pomade, then the aroma that came from it danced sweetly around his nose and lingered in the air around them. It appeared to be… 

“Hair gel?” Midoriya questioned, taking another whiff of the gorgeous smell. 

“Precisely,” Iida smiled. “I had it imported from a place far from here, since I know you enjoy foreign things.”

“Thank you very much!” Midoriya grinned, handing the container to Tsu. She also took a large whiff before started to work on Midoriya’s hair.

Iida just sat in silence, observing Tsu work her magic on Midoriya's hair. Section by section, Midoriya’s curls began to disappear and turn into elegant straight strands of hair, which were being pulled back and adjusted to curl around the back of his head. Midoriya noticed.  
“That’s quite an admiring gaze… You won’t try to court me again today, right?” he teased.

Iida sighed. “No, your highness,” he responded politely.

“Aww, no fun,” Midoriya responded. A few more minutes passed by, and Tsu was nearly finished with her work. “By the way Tsu, can you do the two things again?”

“Of course, your highness.” At the princes request, she got two small sections of hair from the front of boths sides of midoriya's hair, and let them barely hang loosely apart from the rest of the hair, and tucked the ends behind his ears. “All done here.” She announced, closing the container and handing it back to Iida. Iida set it on one of the nearby stands while Midoriya sat up to look at himself in the mirror. 

“Your work is truly art, Tsu,” he praised. The heavenly smell coming from his hair made it all the better. “I feel that, looking like this, I really will end up being courted,” he joked. 

Today’s outfit will be different from the rest. The rest of the castle knows about his birthday and will most likely request to meet with him to share their wishes with him, therefore he had to look presentable and princely. Sixteenth birthdays were kind of a big deal, after all. It was like All Might had explained, being sixteen expects the individual to expand and broaden their view on the world, and begin to think about what they plan to do with it, not that Midoriya hadn’t already began this process long ago. As much as he studies, it seems that the more learns, the more he realizes how many things he hasn’t learned. A truly vicious, but exhilarating cycle. 

Per All Might’s request, his attire will consist of the colors green, black, and gold, which are two standard colors that compliment the theme of the castle, and then green, his color. First, his upper garment is a long sleeved white undershirt, and a green vest on top. The vest is connected by a gold-color belt. His pants are black again, and his boots are mid-calf length and are white. The flashier part of the outfit is his long coat, which is mainly white, but features black, green and gold bars at the tips of the sleeves. A gold outline also covers the area where the buttons lay, and two golden pads cover his shoulders. Oh, he also had a pair of white gloves.

“All I’m missing is a… monocle” Midoriya joked, making a few poses in the mirror. “Hey, I actually really like this.” He thanked the aids before he dismissed them, and then turned to Iida. “So, what’s first?”

Iida pulled out a roll of paper from his coat’s pocket. “Well, first we have to meet with the court in about thirty minutes, apparently they have some urgent news for you. His majesty will also be there. Then, we meet with officials and lords who have each asked to meet with you privately, going to the more influential ones first and then making our way down. Uraraka, Mei, and I have already reserved you for the night, so please try your best to save your energy until then.”

Sounded like a lot, but, dare he say, he felt excited a confident to get through the day. “Well,” he announced loudly, “Let's get going!”

\--------

“We are utterly amazed at the skills you have developed while writing the reports, and are astonished at how you were able to get through one year’s worth of historical studies in the short span of six months. We feared that by working at such a quick pace, the quality of your reports were going to decrease and not suffice as the material we wanted, but you have proved us all wrong. In fact, they’re so well done that I might even publish them as books of their own,” and with that comment, the whole court let out a hearty laugh.

Laughing… in the court?

Suddenly they all got quiet and serious again. “Nonetheless, we would like to express our most gracious gratitude to you, future King of Yuuei, successor of His Highness, King All Might, and future ruler of our beloved kingdom, for showing exemplary scholarship and undevoted dedication to the kingdom. Your coming of age could not have arrived at a better time. Two years from now, we will introduce you to the public with your rightful title. Do you believe you will be ready by then?”

“Undeniably.” Midoriya quickly answered. The judge smiled at him. What in the world-

“The strength and readiness in your voice is heard and appreciated by the court. Now, regarding the present times, your next set of studies with focus primarily on the history of the kingdoms to our south and west. After you finish those, you will live in each kingdom for a period of three months, respectively.”

Woah woah, again what-

“First you will visit the kingdom to the south, Flamuralis, and then the kingdom to the west, the grasslands. Basically, your task will be to live among their publics to be able to compare and contrast their kingdoms and ours. These trips will also strengthen your knowledge on then, so that when the time to present you at the successor comes, you will know the other kingdoms weaknesses and strengths to your advantage. Further details will be explained to you as the months go by, but please keep them in your subconscious for now.

Moving on, The royal ball that was announced six months ago has been solidified. So far, all kingdoms that have been invited have accepted the requests. The date will be exactly one month from now, August 15, and guests will begin to arrive a week prior. You will begin etiquette classes starting three days from now, where you will learn to further speak, act, and dance formally. I’m sure you have already been informed, but due to the secrecy of your true title to the public, you will only act as His Majesty’s aid, following him and learning about influential figures through him.

Last but not least, your etiquette classes start three days from now, so beginning tonight lasting through five days and nights, you are free to roam the kingdom alongside your royal guard and royal enchantress.”

WOOAAHHHH-

“That is all the court has to present to you today. Speak your mind now if you have any doubts or concerns.”

Midoriya gulped, but not from fear or anxiety. His heart just kind of exploded when he heard that last bit of information. “No doubts or concern from me, your honor. I understand very well the information you have given me, and will strive to go beyond your expectations again during these next few months. I humbly thank you for your gifts.” he ended with a bow.

“Very well. You are dismissed by the court. Please, enjoy the rest of your birthday.”

“Thank you for your care.”

The doors had barely closed and he was already racing back to his room to meet with Iida.

\-----

“I know.” was all Iida said, fixing his hair in the mirror.

“Uhh, what?” Midoriya questioned, but quickly dropped the subtle hostility he felt. “So that’s why you ‘reserved’ me for tonight huh? You almost gave yourself away Iida. A...l...m...o...s…-”

“The first Lord we will see is… Lord Kementoss.”

Ooh. Not a bad guy, but still one of those Lords that just parade around the castle, looking for people to scold. “Alright, no sweat. Shall we go?”

“Somehow… you’re even more eager than before,” Iida noted, but he trailed along behind Midoriya and then their long day of meetings began.

\------

“Don’t undress just yet, wait here for fifteen minutes and then we will send someone for you” Iida quickly told Midoriya, pushing him into the room. “Also, very good work today!” and he shut the door.  
“I really wonder what they’re up to now” Midoriya spoke to himself, taking a seat on his couch. His room was basically half filled with presents from the aids around the castle and the royals he met with. Basically, that meant about two-days worth of writing thank you letters to each and every one of them. He didn’t mind though, his natural way with words could hopefully win over a few more people in his favor.

He got up, poured himself a glass of water, drank it, and then sat back down. ‘Fifteen minutes…’ he thought to himself. He could open a few presents to kill him, but suddenly he felt too exhausted to even do that. He drank more water. The clothes still fit him comfortably, that was a good thing. 

… Fifteen minutes were sure ticking by real slowly. Eventually, his pitcher of water was empty, and he desperately wanted more. “Aid.” he called out. He waited for a response, or the sound of a door opening, but to no avail. “Aid.” he repeated, louder this time. He sighed, he really was trying to depend on others.

He opened to door the find no one there waiting for him, which was odd since there should be someone there at all times, which creeped him out when he really thought about it but he had been to busy to care about it these last few months. ‘Guess I’ll fill it myself’ he grumbled. 

He walked over to the kitchen, which was also running with a very low-amount of staff, and gave the pitcher to one of the workers. They offered to carry it back, but Midoriya politely declined and thanked them. While he was walking back to his room, he noticed that there really seemed to be a shortage of workers hustling around the castle. They would always be everywhere, no matter the time. ‘Strange…’ he thought to himself. Suddenly the worst thought came about into his mind.

“What if something serious was going on? Was someone perhaps attacked, and everyone was sent to investigate? No, then there would more more people everywhere rather than less, such as how it is now. Besides, Iida would have definitely come for me. But for what other reason would my aid abandon their post-”

Midoriya was so busy muttering to himself and thinking that he completely missed the figure that he was about to crash into, and for the most part, the other party was equally distracted to not have seen him either. 

The pitcher made an ugly sound as it fell to the marble floor, scattering into many beautiful pieces of piercing glass. After a few milliseconds, Midoriya registered what happened, and began to feel the water from the broken pitcher seep into his clothes. He stood up quickly, observing himself for damage before trying to identify the person he had run into. 

His clothes also looked formal, adorning a long coat similar to Midoriya's, but colored with an angry red instead. The bearer was still lying on the floor, ignoring the water that began to drench his clothes and groaning instead.

Midoriya then realized this was his fault in the first place.

“Sir… are you alright? I’m terribly sorry,” he saw the stranger begin to sit up. “I will have a nurse come immediately, please do not do anything rash until then-”

His next choice of words never made it out of his mouth. Instead they took residence in his throat, making him audibly gasp and choke as quietly as he could.

The stranger had an odd hair color, or rather colors, white hair adorning the right side of his head, along with a grey eye, and red hair on the left side, joined with a turquoise eye. Midoriya wasn’t really freaking out about the eyes though, because the hair reminded him of a distant dream that he had long ago, long ago enough that it made him wince when his mind immediately tried to remember.

He could only stand completely still as the stranger finally rose and opened his eyes, throwing a deadly stare into Midoriya's quivering eyes.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm sure we can all guess who that last person was, right? I am SOO excited to finally write about him, I even re-watched S2 to observe how he is. AH!
> 
> I didn't really plan on writing about Midoriya's birthday, but I wanted to include time skips because underage ships uhhhhh and I figured skipping to important events would help the skips and story make sense.
> 
> So now our dear prince-in-training is 16!
> 
> Next time, Midoriya figures out why the castle is so empty thanks to the stranger, unexpectedly bonds with said stranger, and the villains begin to move once again.
> 
> See ya later! PLUS ULTRA \o/


	4. Hold on

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Midoriya discovers the identity of the stranger and what his business is in their castle. He also learns a few things about the kingdom Flamuralis. Also, apparently the prince of Flamuralis has gone missing in their castle.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hiiiii spooky baes  
> Very excited to have been able to write about our favorite white & red haired boy!!  
> Hopefully I got his attitude alright. I did make a minor, or major, adjustment, but thats for the sake of the future story.  
> That being said, enjoy!

Midoriya only continued to stare at the stranger and his hair for a couple of seconds before he realized the water was starting to get absorbed by his coat. Surely some water wouldn’t ruin it, but he was glad an accident like this waited to happen at the end of the day. 

He quickly got up to help the stranger, who was also starting to get up. “My deep apologies sir,” he was saying while beginning to hold the strangers arm, “I was completely lost in my thoughts and-”

“Please, do not touch me.” was how the stranger responded to Midoriya’s help. 

Midoriya froze, dumbfounded for a second but then quickly got over it to respond. “My apologies. Are you hurt anywhere?”

The stranger inspected himself briefly. “I don’t think anything could have gotten through this coat, but you mentioned a nurse and I’d like for them to see me.”

“Very well,” Midoriya responded. “Please follow me.” For now, he’d have to leave that mess behind to comply with the strangers request. 

The two walked in mutual silence to a section of the castle that Midoriya was very familiar with. During the first days of inheriting the kings quirk, One for All, he suffered horrible injuries while attempting to learn how to control it. Everyday he was being dragged or carried to the nurses, all in secrecy of course because the rest of royals in the castle did not know that One for All can be transferred. Sometimes he would be conscious enough to learn the route to get to the nurses, but other times he was completely passed out and only remembered the few seconds before the wreckoning, and then waking up covered in bandages. A few times he would hear snippets of the doctors and nurses conversations about his diagnosis. ‘Firecracker in his bones’, ‘multiple bones snapped like twigs’, and ‘fractures all over the bones and surrounding ligaments’ were often brought up. Somehow amongst all the seriousness and severity of his injuries, Midoriya always managed to laugh a bit when he thought about the ‘Firecracker in his bones’. It was a spot-on explanation, which could only ever have been thought of because a quirk such as One for All exists.

Despite all the pain and agony that followed his training, he still felt honored and proud that such a dangerous and omnipotent quirk was entrusted to him by the figure he respected most. He understood that trials would continue to hinder him until he practiced enough to control it, but if he appreciated this journey of self-control and humility much more than if he had complete control of it in a day. He knew he still had a long and lengthy path in front of him that led to him becoming the King, and wouldn’t want it any other way, even though he often complained about the formality of it all.

His reminiscing was cut short when he arrived at a large doorway that spelled ‘Infirmary’ in their cultures original language. “We’ve arrived,” he told the stranger, and opened the door to walk inside.

He breathed out a lengthy, relaxing sigh. The infirmary was not as empty as the halls were, much to his satisfaction. One of the main doctors recognized him immediately, and looked as if he was about to burst out a ‘your highness’, but instead darted his eyes at the stranger besides Midoriya, and choose another greeting that was safe. 

“What brings you two gentlemen here?” The doctor asked, walking over to them.

What happened next was odd, and even seemed a bit humorous, but the following conversation happened between the doctor and Midoriya without a word actually being pronounced.

‘I don’t know who he is, or what he’s doing here,’ Midoriya's eyes signaled.

‘Why are you with him?’

‘Obviously I did something something stupid’

‘Does he know anything about you?’

‘No.’

“I was carrying a pitcher of water to my residence, and failed to notice that he and I were about to walk straight into each other. We both fell, and the pitcher of water broke in the hallway, leaving a mess of water and broken glass behind. I didn’t clean anything up because I wanted you to inspect this man for injuries first.” Midoriya then audibly explained. 

The stranger looked a bit satisfied when he heard that last part.

“You left the mess behind for someone else to potentially hurt themselves on?” Was the doctors only question, signaling them both to walk with her as she led them to one of the rooms.

“I… well…”

‘Unreasonable,’ her laxed eyes spoke.

Midoriya’s eyes just noted to the stranger behind them.

‘Even if you like him,’ her face then expressed.

Midoriya incorrectly displayed his objection by blushing.  
“Please, “ the doctor said, extending an arm to gesture at a bed at the far side of the room, “Remain here and one of the Nurses will tend to you in a minute.”

The stranger nodded and began to walk towards the bed.

“Thank you,” Midoriya responded, bowing gently to the doctor. Her expression displayed guilt when she saw him bow, but she understood that his identity as a prince had not been known by the stranger, therefore he had to play as a regular man in the castle.

She nodded, winked, and then exited the room.

Midoriya groaned in his head.

“Hey,” the stranger suddenly called out. 

“Oh,” Midoriya said. He had forgotten that injured are usually left in the rooms alone, unless someone close like a family member or personal guard was there with them. Midoriya was usually accompanied by Iida or Uraraka. 

He turned to face the stranger and then slightly bowed as well. “I’m sorry, I will take my leave.”

But the stranger held up a hand. “No, it’s fine, you may stay. If I do end up with injuries anyways, I want you to know that it was your fault.”

‘O...kay….’ Midoriya thought. He gulped and then responded with, “Very well.” He walked away from the entrance of the room and settled for a spot by the wall, leaning into it and crossing his arms. He didn’t even notice the stranger gazing at him. Instead, he was focused on his thoughts one again. Usually, he hated uncomfortable silence, but this time, he actually welcomed it to get his deep thoughts and concerns to come out so he could piece things together. First, he had to figure out this young strangers identity, and find out why he was at the castle on such an important date, his birthday. None of the royals made his birthday a secret, and it was known and celebrated all throughout the castle that he was also their prince, so willingly having royal guests over during something that made no sense. Obviously they would notice the celebration, suspect that it must be for someone important, and then ask who that important person is. To the public, Yuuei has no successors or blood relatives from the king, and a celebration this large was never done for Judges or Lords. So this man and whoever accompanies must’ve arrived unexpected. 

Second, the dream that he had long ago, had the presence of a figure with white and red hair like the stranger before him. Before, he had hidden the details of the dream far from his conscious thoughts, believing that they would be of no use to him while he vigorously took on his newly appointed tasks. Now, though, he couldn’t help trying to remember them all. Shortly he realized had had actually forgotten about them. For now, they lay safely written in his journal from back then, which was in his room. He figured he would retrieve it and read it before he parted with the stranger.

Now third, he-

“Who are you?” the stranger suddenly asked. 

‘Damn’ Midoriya thought. He was beaten to this fateful question. He was too tired to come up with a fabrication of lies to prevent his identity from leaking, so he chose responses that weren't too far from the truth.

“My apologies for not introducing myself earlier, my name is.... Deku,” he tried to respond casually. He did hesitate a bit before saying ‘Deku’ though, which he hoped the stranger hadn't noticed. “I’m a scholar who was invited to study in the castle’s grand library.” 

“Scholar Deku…” the stranger repeated.

Midoriya had not yet had the chance to evaluate the personality of this person. Initially, when he told Midoriya to not touch him, Midoriya thought it was rude, but then he figured that most royalty are instinctively protecting themselves. Even so, touching anyone as casually as Midoriya was trying to do was actually unencouraged between everyone, not just royalty. Perhaps it was a trait from his childhood that briefly resurfaced before he remember the difference in his current situation. 

“Correct,” Midoriya responded.

“...I’m sorry, too,” the stranger spoke, “I too was caught up in my own thoughts.” He held out his left hand and stared at it, clenching it slowly. “From the way you stared at me when we first ran into each other, I take it that you noticed I’m not from here.”

“You could put it that way,” Midoriya responded. Ah, he hadn’t meant to actually respond aloud though. Originally yes, he was surprised at the stranger, but not particularly because he wasn’t a familiar face.

“Do you know about the kingdom to the south?”

“Of course, Flamuralis.”

“Right. Well, that's my kingdom. I’m also a… scholar. More of a diplomat now though, because of how much they’ve been asking me to travel.”

“I see…” Midoriya trailed off. “That's amazing!” he suddenly said loudly, surprising the stranger. “So where have you been so far… um…”  
“Shoto.”

“...Shoto…?”. Somehow the name sounded familiar.

Shoto straightened up. “Well, so far, only here, to Yuuei. I was too young to be allowed to travel before, and supposedly I still am, but after a few coaxes and trials, here I am.” His mouth gave off the slightest hint to what seemed to be a smile. 

“I see…” Midoriya responded. So a scholar from Flamuralis. That might explain the red hair, the royal family had a lot of redheads, so it must’ve been a trait for the kingdom.

So this was exciting. Midoriya had run into someone from the kingdom he’s supposed to study and eventually visit for three months. Perhaps he could start getting information now from Shoto to get a head start on his reports. The earlier the better, after all. First, he wanted to confirm the suspicion about the rest of his group.

“Did you come alone? Or-”

“Excuse me”, a voice behind the door spoke, accompanied by knocks.

“Come in.” Shoto instructed. Midoriya’s question would have to wait.

The nurse stepped in with a few gadgets in her hands, and then introduced herself. “My name is Priscilla, nice to meet you both.” Her eyes focused on Shoto, who for the most part, sat there looking completely fine. ‘An easy appointment’, she thought to herself. “So, what seems to be the problem here, young man?” she asked.

“We ran into each other and fell,” Midoriya quickly chimed in. After he was cut off by the nurses entrance he began to think to himself, putting things here and there together. When he did this, he often ended up blurting out things that deal with something that was said out loud whether it was directed to him or not, due to his neurons being riled up from the thinking. 

The nurses looked to Shoto to confirm, and he nodded. “Alright. Do you feel pain anywhere?”

“Not particularly, but I have had a headache from when I arrived from my travels. Falling down didn’t help it feel any better.”

Midoriya heard this and slunk back further against the wall. 

“How long ago was your last meal?”

“About seven hours ago, from when we stopped in a village to take a breather.”

The nurse scribbled some things into a notepad, and then looked back up at Shoto. “Okay young man. We will give you some herbal medicines for the headache, which will also help your body in case something ends up hurting later, but they must be taken with food.” She turned to look at Midoriya, and then realized that she couldn’t say ‘your highness’ or his actual name due to Shouto’s presence. She settled for, “you, please take him to the kitchens and ask for a plentiful but light meal.” She felt some shame for addressing the prince in such an unrespectful manner, much like the doctor had, but she had no other option.

Midoriya stopped leaning on the wall. “Yes ma’am,” was all he responded. “Also, have you forgotten that my name is Deku?”

A secret alias, cool. “My apologies Deku, I feel like I should’ve had your name ingrained in my head already since you’re in here so often.”

Midoriya blushed in embarrassment, and then the nurse took her leave. She would return with the medicines shortly.

“You’re in here a lot?” Shoto asked. He didn’t miss that little remark.

“Ah, well… yeah. I… spar a lot with the guards, which I mean, I shouldn’t, and mixing that with my lack of skill…”

“I see,” Shoto responded. “I like to spar in my free time as well in my kingdom.”

Midoriya smiled. “That’s cool Shoto, maybe you can teach me a few things about combat.” There wasn’t much room for Midoriya to learn anything else though. He had been being taught by All Might and Iida since he started living in the castle three years ago. If anything, he was barely short of being perfect. Or so he thought.

“Depending on how many days we’re allowed to stay here, maybe I can.” Shoto responded, smiling. 

Oh. Midoriya hadn’t really been paying attention to Shoto’s face since they met, and he regrets not doing so earlier because the addition of a smile on this boys face suddenly lit up the whole room, almost making him too bright to look at. The overall length of his hair fell short barely before it reached his eyes, but a few rebelling strands did so anyways. The contrasting colors of white and red made the rest of his facial feature stand out. His nose was nice and narrow, sitting comfortably and perfectly between Shoto’s grey and turquoise eyes. His eyes were a completely different story, having a beautiful shape that made Midoriya realize the shape of someone's eyes definitely contributed towards the persons beauty. Again, the two contrasting colors of grey and turquoise made it impossible not to stare at them. Each seemed to offer a different story, hiding what they were from even each other.

His jaw was finely chiseled, letting his mouth rest gently above it. The color of his lips was a gentle relative of the color of his red hair, a brilliant washed out rosy color. 

Midoriya was quick to think and formulate thoughts, but these specifically rushed in and out of him like arrows. He hoped that he hadn’t stayed silent enough to give away his current thoughts, that must surely never ever surface again, and opened his mouth to respond with one of the questions he had previously, but Priscilla’s return saved him before he said anything rash. 

She now carried a folder and a bottle with the herbal liquid. “Here it is, Shoto. If you can please sign this waiver before you accept this, confirming that you visited our infirmary and willingly took our medicine.” She handed him a paper and a quill. 

He signed it quickly and then returned the paper to Priscilla, who took it and tucked it back into the folder. “Alright. So you can take this before or after your meal, preferably before so it could have a quicker effect. I entrust him to you, Deku.”

“Got it, thank you for your care.” Deku bowed to her. 

Priscilla took her leave. Midoriya and Shoto followed after her. “So, craving anything in particular?” He asked Shoto. The boy put his hand, on his chin, wow this was a sight, and wondered off for a bit. 

Truth be told, Midoriya’s heart was still beating quite fast from when he realized he was attracted to Shoto. He had never really experienced anything like that. All the tiny details of Shoto’s face overstimulated his thoughts, and the feeling was compared to that of being drunk. There was no room for anything but thoughts about Shoto. Currently, he was worried that the warmth he felt would cause beads of sweat to form on his forehead, a suspicious sign. 

It’s not like Midoriya had never thought he’d be attracted to someone eventually. Truthfully, he felt so busy that even if he had fostered feelings for someone before, he couldn’t have done anything about it. He had met a fair amount of people from all genders and figured a few should’ve given him a rise, but none had thus far. Uraraka was pretty cute at first, but before he knew it, he thought and treated her as a sibling. Mei… is Mei. A few town girls had pretty features, he gives them that, but none that just completely exploded in his face like Shoto’s. This was a strange revelation, indeed. 

“Do you know about these things called Noodles?” Shoto broke the silence, catching Midoriya by surprise. 

“Noodles? Um…. basically made of flour right?” Midoriya had eaten them before. They were filling for sure, but the chef hadn’t correctly figured out which tastes to accompany them. 

“Yes. Do the chefs here make any?” 

“I’ve seen them before. Is that what you would like?” 

Shoto nodded. “Well actually I’d prefer something called ‘Soba’ but I doubt you know about it. I’d like some bread and wine as well, to help it go down.”

“Ah, actually you can’t drink wine with that medicine.”

“Why not?” Shoto asked cautiously. 

“Don’t be alarmed, it’s just because alcohol messes with the reactions of medicines. It doesn’t mean that it will with this particular medicine, but it’s a rule that's sort of just acknowledged by everyone. 

“Interesting.” Shoto responded. “They must be pretty advanced then. In my kingdom, our medical studies aren’t greatly supported, so we still have old techniques that use less potent herbs. They probably don’t react as quick as these, but anything you eat or drink, including alcohol, isn’t dangerous.” He pauses for a second before continuing to talk. “I expected the Grasslands to have excellent advancements in medicine due to their vast collections of native herbs and flowers, but I didn’t expect Yuuei to have them either.” 

This surprised Midoriya. Supposedly, according to All Might, Flamuralis was a kingdom as moderately advanced as Yuuei. It’s strange to hear that they’re not as advanced in medical knowledge as thought to be. How many more secrets does Flamuralis have? 

“Well if you really want wine afterwards, I’ll gift you a set.” Midoriya spoke calmly. 

Wait, did he even know what he said? 

He blushed a little. “Ah, I-I mean as an apology gift! For… uh… running into you earlier.” Crap!

Shoto just remained quiet when he heard Midoriya offer this, but his amused expression spoke loud enough in its own. “Thanks.”

A minute later they arrived at the kitchen, very dry much to Midoriya’s satisfaction. The chefs greeted them both and Midoriya began to explain the food that Shoto wanted. The main chef nodded, and got to work. 

The distraction of ordering the food let Midoriya focus on what was truly important at the moment, which was discovering who else was staying at the castle. 

“Shoto,” he called. Shoto faced him attentively. “Did you travel here on your own?”

“No.” Shoto responded easily. “The king of Flamuralis is also here.”

WHAT. 

“T-The king?” Midoriya asked in a squeak. Shoto simply nodded and then looked away. 

“Apparently, he’s here to discuss the business of villains that have been appearing at your south and our north. A couple of months ago, a large group was caught trying to traffic children to other distant kingdoms. Did you know about that?”

That incident is still being investigated? “Ahh, yes that was about… six months ago.”

The night still remained fairly fresh in Midoriya’s mind. Mainly because of the consequences that he had to deal with afterwards. 

“Yeah. Well, so far that’s all I know.” 

Midoriya could tell he was obviously lying. He probably knew more, but wasn’t disclosing it for whatever reason. Midoriya was fine with that, but he’d really like to know how the incident involved Flamuralis too. All in good time, he supposes. 

For some reason, Midoriya wondered if this scholar would be interested in reading a book or two from their library, so he said, “Shoto, also depending on the length of your stay, you could probably read a book or two from our library. To help your studies maybe.” 

Shoto looked up and gave her another one of that bone-crushing-in-a-good-way smile. “I would very much like that.” 

Midoriya felt his heart swoon into his ass. 

A few minutes afterwards, Shoto received his food, and Midoriya also received a salad plate with chicken and bread. They decided to eat in one of the hall rooms nearby. Shoto took the medicine as prescribed, and then started to eat. The silence remained while each focused on their own meals. 

Midoriya was preparing to start some conversation about what Flamuralis was advanced in if it wasn’t medicine, but loud steps were heard advancing towards the entrance of the hall. Shoto immediately stood up protectively, Midoriya following soon after him. A few seconds later, a familiar pair of glasses were staring at Midoriya. “Your Hi-!!!!!!” 

‘Oh no no no’ Midoriya thought, letting his teeth clench with anxiety. It was all over.

Thankfully, Iida realized his almost-grave mistake and took a millisecond to fix himself. “Your highness,” he continued anyways, and bowed. 

Midoriya felt like his bowels were going to explode out of him. What are you doing Iida!! 

“You think I’m a prince?” A voice unexpectedly responded. It was Shoto. 

“Are you not? The prince from Flamuralis?” Iida retaliated. 

Shoto? A prince? 

“Have you seen a portrait of the prince?”

Iida thought for a second. “Truthfully, no.” 

“Good. I would have thought you been mentally ill if you had and then guessed that it was me.” Shoto said coldly.

Ooh, a sharp tongue. Something Midoriya didn’t mind. 

“My apologies…” 

“Shoto.” Midoriya spoke. There goes his mouth again. 

“Deku.” Iida suddenly turned to Midoriya. His expression seemed irritated. Why? Oh right, the 15 minutes thing. 

“Oh, crap,” Midoriya hastily muttered to himself. He began to walk closer to Iida. “Iida, I’m sorry. My room ran out of water so I went to refill the pitcher and on my way back I ran into Shoto and knocked him down as well as the pitcher so I took him to the infirmary and they treated him but to take his medicine he had to eat so I brought him to the kitchen and now we’re here and I’m sorry I didn’t do like I was told.”

How’s that for a run-on sentence? Still, he had accurately described the events of the past hour. Iida’s face relaxed a bit, but he still looked on-edge for the most part.

Disregarding Shoto’s presence, who had actually began to eat again once he realized it was someone Deku was familiar with, he began to reprimand the prince. “I had been looking for you for the past hour. No one has seen you, much less guessed where you’d be at. And I see you’ve found yourself a companion in midst of everything. Did you get lonely that quickly?”

Oh Iida, if only you knew. “Hey, I already explained what happened. Everything was totally out of my hands. Besides, you found me now, right?” 

Iida looked over to see Shoto, who oddly enough, just nodded and continued eating. Who was this person? 

Midoriya noticed Iida’s gaze on Shoto. “Oh, he’s a scholar from Flamuralis. OH. Speaking of which, did you know about their arrival? And why the castle is empty?” 

“I do know, but I barely found out after I left your room. That’s why it took me awhile to return, but I see that I worried about you for nothing. Apparently the king and prince arrived a few hours ago, while we were busy running around the castle. Then, the prince was absent from their group, so right now they’re having everyone look for him.”

Midoriya thought about the information that was just revealed to him. The prince also came? One of the princes that All Might said was his age? “Wouldn’t that have meant the castle would be busier since everyone was looking?” It didn’t make sense. 

“They were around the eastern section of the castle, so that’s where everyone was sent first. You, scholar of Flamuralis,” Iida addresses Shoto, “do you know about your missing prince?” 

“Doesn’t surprise me,” Shoto responded. “He looked like he wanted to off himself as soon as he arrived. I don’t blame him for running.” 

“I see your loyalty to the crown is faulty. You have no concern?” 

“He is a smart prince. He’s probably exactly where he wants to be right now. I bet he won’t be found until he wants to.” 

Iida frowned. “We’ll see. For now-“ he turned to Midoriya, “we’re still on for tonight. We have no role in this ‘missing prince’ business.” 

Shoto raises his head from his meal once again. “Do I… need to leave?”

Midoriya and Iida looked at him together, puzzled. “Huh? For what?” Midoriya asked. 

“I sense pent up… sexual frustration.” Shoto explained, with the most clueless expression ever. 

Midoriya and Iida looked at each other, and then burst out laughing. Shoto remained clueless. 

“No, no Shoto,” Midoriya began to explain. He was about to tell some lie that was clear in his head, but much to his surprise, he actually said, “You see, today was my birthday. Iida is one of my closest friends in this castle, so he promised to do something special along with my two other friends.” Somehow, lying to him now would’ve felt horrible. But why? 

“That still sounds…” 

“Shoto!” Midoriya exclaimed, laughing even more. “Seriously, get that expression off of your face.” 

Shoto laughed too, surprisingly.

Midoriya felt his talk-before-thinking gears running, but didn’t have time to stop them. “Would you like to accompany us, Shoto? Can he come, Iida?” 

Iida just stared at Midoriya, but Midoriya didn’t waver. It was his birthday after all. “I suppose that’s fine, if you wish it.”

Then Midoriya turned to Shoto. 

“Somehow, I enjoyed your presence and the conversations that came from it, so yes, please have me.” Was what Shoto said. 

Iida adjusted his glasses. “Well, then, once you’re both finished eating, I’ll walk you to our destinations. Allow me to tell Uraraka and Mei about the extra company though.” And he left. It wouldn’t take long for him to come back, the engines on his calves subconsciously made him walk unbearably fast. It was annoying to keep up with him when he was excited too. 

“Uraraka and Mei?” Shoto questioned. 

“Oh, they also work at the castle. Uraraka is like an enchantress and Mei is the blacksmith of the castle.” 

“... Interesting.” Was all Shoto responded with. 

As expected, Iida returned almost immediately. Luckily, Shoto and Midoriya were as good as done with their food already. 

“Alright, let's go.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> BOYYYYY I'm so exCiTeD
> 
> I want to write about these two boys interacting forever.  
> SO a quick note: Shoto does not have his scar yet. That will come, soon, and then the cold attitude that he initially has in the anime will return. 
> 
> So I'm gonna start drawing a few things (mainly outfits) so look forward to that!
> 
> Next chapter will mainly be about what they do in the small room and a big (but not surprising b/c of the tags) reveal.
> 
> Hope you enjoyed~   
> See ya soon, PLUS ULTRA!!


	5. Todoroki Shoto

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Welcome back!!  
> Man oh man did I really go overboard with this chapter, and I absolutely loved it  
> also a lil drawing from me ft. Todoroki's & Midoriya's outfits from when they meet! https://twitter.com/Justforgigs3/status/1050151275642281985
> 
> that being said, FASTEN YOUR TODODEKU SEAT BELTS AND ENJOY!
> 
> *smol archive warning for hinted abuse*  
> its only present for like 3 sentences, its also not described but rather hinted at from another persons POV, but still beware!

“Surprise again, Deku!!” Uraraka and Mei cheered, holding fun poses with each other. Iida hurried over and joined them too. They all extended their arms outwards and gestured Midoriya to take a look at the room. The small room was covered in balloons and flowers alike, much like his room.

‘I wonder how many shops they went to,’ Midoriya thought. 

Some colorful ribbons were also extended across the ceiling and walls. On the table, a variety of sweet-bread and a collection of wines decorated it’s surface.

“Ohh, you guyssss,” Midoriya sang, studying the entire room. It looked so bright and cheery and beautiful. His friends were certainly outdoing themselves today, proving to be worthy of being his best mates. 

Suddenly, his eye got snagged on the bread and wines on the table. “N-No way!” he exclaimed, getting closer and examining the bottles first. “From…!”

All three of his friends laughed in unison. “Yes! From your village!” Uraraka confirmed, patting Midoriya on the back. 

“But not only that…” Iida suddenly announced, reaching for an envelope that sat on a nightstand in the corner of the room. He picked it up and then brought it to Midoriya, who accepted it and then read who it was from. 

‘Inko.’ was all that was written on the outside.

No way…. 

“Is this… real?” He asked in a small voice, feeling the letters with his fingers and engraving that handwriting into his brain. 

“As real as it gets, Deku.” Iida responded slowly. His three friends remained silent as Midoriya kept observing the envelope. Originally they had discussed whether or not to give it to him once they were united in the room, knowing that it would cause the mood to turn for possibly the worst, but they trusted Midoriya and his feelings. 

“Can… can I read this later?” He asked, which was unnecessary. 

Iida nodded. “Take as much time as you need.” Iida wanted to add a ‘your highness’ so impossibly bad. 

So then Midoriya moved forward to embrace Iida, and suddenly Uraraka and Mei joined in as well. 

Meanwhile, Shoto observed over them in silence, feeling very out of place. He didn’t mind though. 

When they untangled from each other, Iida tucked the envelope into his tunic, and they tried to move on from the touchy subject. In a matter of minutes, they had succeeded. 

Midoriya was the first to take a large drink from one of the wine bottles, looking absolutely satisfied when he finished gulping it down. “Oh man,” he said in a melodious tone, “I missed this soooo much.” He took a large bite of one of the breads from the table as well. He noticed Shoto staring at him, amused. Feeling a bit of shame, he looked down at the bread, seemingly offering Shoto to get some, but the young man just slightly shook his head. 

“If you really want to enjoy it, you should slow it down,” Iida informed him. “At this rate, you’ll be unbearable to deal with within an hour.” 

Midoriya stuck his tongue out, and proceeded to take another drink. 

So the story behind this delicious wine was this: before Midoriya officially moved into the castle, he visited his village to remember and reminisce his childhood. It was the last time he would also have freedom, or at least until he started to figure out how to sneak away. He had a lot of fun meeting friends and adults that he used to know when he was a child, but the most fun was when the village decided to give him some of their homemade wine to taste. Usually boys his age weren’t allowed to drink, not that there was a rule or anything. It was just more acceptable for young men to have their first tastes of alcohol when they turn 15, since that’s the age that they start working. 

Midoriya was 13 and a few months old. Of course, he tried to deny the people’s kind offerings initially, but eventually he cracked and agreed. He would only drink a little to remember the taste of his village’s hardships and pride, but one glass of that sweet, sweet wine and it’s like he was cast under a spell. 

The story goes on for much longer, but Midoriya only likes to remember about the nostalgic taste and all the ‘socially acceptable’ memories associated with it. And of course, for the bitter sweetness it contained. 

For the duration of the night, the four friends laughed and told stories from their childhood days whilst Shoto attentively listened. Uraraka apparently got lost for a couple of days in the castle when she first arrived, having stumbled into the emergency tunnels. She said it was one of the most frightening events of her life, but that from that day on she got braver and decided to go against her timid and weak nature by learning martial arts. Eventually, she was even inspired to learn some sword fighting skills from Midoriya and Iida, although it was a secret that was kept between them.

Before becoming a blacksmith, Mei spent her time messing around with soldiers in her village as well, inventing weapons that could help them in battle. Their feedback was most useful, and that’s how she became so skilled at creating beautiful and efficient weapons for the people in the castle (mostly for Midoriya, she was very loyal to him). 

It took a few more stories to get Iida to share some of his own. His were the most entertaining, since he was allowed to leave the castle often on missions and interact with the outside world. Judging by his stories though, his lifestyle was not one to be envied. Supposedly once, his comrades convinced him to drink enough to get tipsy and ‘enjoy a night’ since they had finished their assigned duties, but a few minutes later, he was being chased by a herd of hogs that were baited to follow him. He finally got rid of them when he jumped into a lake. 

All of their stories for interesting for sure, but each made sure to leave out the small detail of them having quirks. The more secrecy the better.

Uraraka was a few more glasses into the wine, when she noticed Midoriya's new company, Shoto, was just sitting there observing them, not having touched any wine or bread. “Don’t be shy,” she told him, offering a small glass of the wine to him. “There’s plenty to go around!” Then she smiled at him. 

“Thank you, Uraraka, but Deku instructed me not to drink-“

“How did you meet again?” Mei chimed in unexpectedly, also chewing on some of the bread. The bread too was native to Midoriya's village, but it’s foundation recipe was also used in others parts of the kingdom. 

He looked to Midoriya to see if he would respond, but the scholar was too busy admiring his glass of wine before abruptly downing it.

“Well, our foreheads met first. He ran into me and dropped a pitcher of water, so he took me to the infirmary.” Shoto explained.

“Speaking of which,” Midoriya had finally stopped drinking and eating for a moment, “Do you feel better?” 

Shoto thought back to the supposed potent medicine. He hadn’t been thinking about it, but his headache was almost gone within ten minutes of taking it. “Yeah” he nodded, “it worked quickly, as you said it would.”

Midoriya sighed and smiled. “That’s good... I can’t even imagine how guilty I’d feel if I had seriously hurt someone as nice looking as you.” 

Some awkward silence came about the entire room. 

“Shoto… you are pretty attractive, now that I’m looking at you more,” Mei added. She looked to Uraraka and Uraraka nodded furiously, growing a bit pink. “We’re honored to have you,” she also added.

Shoto still had a straight face and no blush present, but he was flattered. He heard comments like these so often he immediately tunes out when he hears them, but getting them from Midoriya and his seemingly honest friends gave him a nice feeling. 

Despite it being true that Shoto really was just like a fifth wheel, listening along to everyone’s stories unable to find a way to add stories of his own, he was enjoying his time getting to know these four friends. It seemed that they all had known each other for a while, judging by the way they all kept teasing each other. They had a delicate nature around them, though he knew that alone and on duty, they must’ve been pretty serious enemies. He wondered if everyone in their castle was as nice and dangerous as them. 

He also noticed that Midoriya was starting to reach his limit, and hadn’t shared as many stories as his friends, which oddly disappointed him. 

“I’ll take that now,” he said, taking Midoriya's glass. There was still some left in the cup, so he finished it before pouring himself some more. 

Midoriya opened his mouth to protest, but immediately shut up and ceased all unimportant thoughts aside once Shoto was in his gaze. His cheeks were already colored in a peachy pink tint, but now the color grew a bit more intense. 

Since the overload of visual stimulation back in the infirmary, Midoriya had been trying his best to ignore it and move on. Even while he was downing the wine, his subconscious thoughts were focused on not focusing on Shoto. Despite his efforts, his eyes did wander to him a lot, but Shoto was, thankfully, always keeping his eyes on Uraraka, Mei, and Iida while they were telling their stories. Then Midoriya thought it was smart to remain quiet so Shoto wouldn’t ever look at him, and so there was no risk of them looking at each other in the eyes.

Oh but Shoto could tell something was up with Midoriya. 

“Dekuuuuu,” Uraraka sang. “You’ve been so quiet,” she frowned. 

Shoto finished the glass of wine and added, “He has been, huh? I’d have expected to hear more interesting stories from a scholar, especially on his birthday.” 

Midoriya gulped. Was Shoto secretly wishing he had been sharing stories this whole time? Or was his drunken mind and accelerated heartbeat just making up weird assumptions. 

Flustered, Midoriya tried to choke out a tale. “I… uh… one time I…”

“PLEASE DO NOT SPEAK ANYMORE YOUNG MASTER!!!” Iida yelled, slamming his hands on the table. The empty bottles shackled against each other. Suddenly he extended a hand straight out, and started making chopping gestures. “Can’t you see he’s obviously burdened by something?? I cannot allow his small being be teased like this!!!” 

Nobody had seemed to notice, but Iida had been doing his fair share in finishing up a few bottles of wine. His body was more than able to handle it, being able to drink heavily was a personal but important trait to have among the guards, not to mention the royal guards who not only fought but also participated in formal meetings and parties with royals, but eventually it reached his head and…

“Small being?” Midoriya repeated, offended. 

Shoto had also heard something else. “Young master?” He turned to Midoriya.

‘Oh crap’ Midoriya thought. 

In the span of a few seconds, the reunion went from joyful, to suspicious, to joyful again because Uraraka and Mei were laughing their asses off. “YOUNG MASTER!!!” Uraraka bellowed, holding her stomach and falling sideways onto the ground. Mei was barely able to keep herself up on the table, gasping for air. 

“Why are you laughing!?!?” Iida yelled again. 

Seeing the pair laugh while Iida stared at them irritated made Shoto crack a smile. 

Iida has some internal mission to pull off though, and the wine did all it could to support him. He suddenly crawled over to Midoriya and put his hands on Midoriya’s shoulders. He burped. “Deku….” 

At least he still remembered about Midoriya’s alias. 

“Me, I… You don’t have to face your hardships alone. Please, let me help you with your burdens…. I… I love you…” he managed to add. That was all Iida said before he fell into Midoriya’s lap. The alcohol had had its fun and then left. 

Midoriya’s mouth just formed into a big ‘O’ while he inspected the now passed out big Iida in his lap. Shoto just eyed Iida as well, looking equally surprised. There was surely something bigger going on in the picture. 

“So you two are lovers…” Shoto mockingly gasped, putting his hand over his mouth. 

“Tha-that’s not it!” Midoriya protested. “I’m sure he just… I...”

“I’ll explain!” Mei swiftly added, wiping a few tears away from her eye. Uraraka was also starting to calm herself down. “In the past, Deku has helped Iida with a lot of serious things, so in a way he feels indebted to Deku. He doesn't really talk about it though, which is why his heart took advantage of his current drunken state.” Mei looked oddly proud of herself after that explanation, and took a small bow.

“‘Young master’ is how he usually refers to Deku when he's drunk, which is probably how he looks up to Deku even though he’s older.” Uraraka added, standing up and walking over to Iida. The lie was escalating, but it wasn’t all exaggerated and untrue. “Those last words though, I think those actually did mean something.” She said, trying to move him off of Midoriya.

Midoriya just sat there trying to process how suspicious yet innocent the current situation kept getting. In his tipsy state, it was all too much to handle. He just sighed and promised he’d think about it later, but for the meantime, turned back to Shoto. “I’m sorry, we’re all a huge mess,” he apologized, scratching his head timidly.

“As long as you explain later so I can catch up and stop these curious feelings in me. I don’t mind,” Shoto responded.

He was now looking into Midoriya’s eyes, which is what Midoriya was trying to avoid. Just a glance was all it took for those two-colored eyes to suck him into some alternate universe for a second, where only he and Shoto were present.

And in a strange turn of events, the real universe had actually given them just that.

“It seems like it's time for all of us to rest,” Uraraka spoke, giving up on trying to carry Iida on her own. Mei was already passed out on the table, seemingly having used up her last bit of brain power when she explained Iida’s sudden confession. ‘This would be so much easier if I could use my quirk’ she thought. Usually when the four friends celebrated and drank, she would remain sober enough to float them back into their rooms. Given the current situation with the stranger from another kingdom, she couldn’t do that. 

“I’m going to call for some guards to carry him back to his room. I’ll be right back,” she announced, and then left the room.

So now it was just Shoto and Midoriya. How much worse could it get?

“I’m, uh, gonna go catch some air outside,” Midoriya excused himself, standing up and walking towards the balcony outside of the room. 

Unexpectedly, Shoto got up as well. “It did get pretty warm in here,” he confessed, starting to remove his coat. “You should remove your coat as well. I’d hate to see it covered in your digested previous meals.”

Midoriya laughed nervously. “You’re right,” he admitted, shaking off his coat. He laid it on a couch that was on the right side of the room, meanwhile Shoto just kept held of his.

The two walked passed the sliding glass door and into the fresh air outside, immediately inhaling some and letting it cool their insides. The sudden transition from warm to cold made Midoriya shiver, so he crossed his arms and walked forward to rest them on the railing. Shoto followed after him, although he didn’t seem to be bothered by the cold. 

The two remained silent as they gazed upon the vast amounts of land below them. The view was similar to the view back in All Might’s room, which featured the glistening lights and outlines from villages that were far into the distance. This particular view also showed parts of a grand lake that resided near the castle. Midoriya observed the waves that endlessly bounced moonlight around to each other. The alcohol in his system made Midoriya more captivated than he’d regularly be. Shoto seemed to notice the twinkling interest in his eyes.

“Your kingdom is beautiful,” Shoto spoke, also observing the different scenery that was presented. “It’s no wonder you all give off a good vibe. Your auras match the innocence and beauty of nature. I assume the public is also like that.” 

Ah, Shoto was not only complimenting Midoriya, but his entire kingdom as well. What a true gentleman. 

“You put it in a nice way. I… hadn’t really seen us like that,” Midoriya responded, extending his hand out to the land. 

“Well, as an outsider, that’s what I’ve observed.”

Midoriya smiled. Then he remembered about a question he had before. “Shoto, I’ve been meaning to ask for your age. You mentioned you were still considered too young to travel but did so anyways.” 

Upon hearing this question, Shoto thought for a second. “Are you trying to court me? Or offend me?” He asked, giving Midoriya a serious look. 

Midoriya’s tipsy and easily susceptible brain starting rambling before he could even think. “N-no neither! Of course not! It’s just, you present yourself very well and always speak cautiously, and it seems like nothing can get by you, so I figured you can’t be super young. I guess I’m also curious about how Flamuralis views traveling and the rules they have for it for scholars.” 

Shoto kept giving him a look, but eventually he broke and laughed softly. Midoriya was trembling nervously. 

“I’m 15 and a half,” he explained, joining Midoriya in resting his arms on the railing. “And, I mean, it’s not that our citizens aren’t allowed to travel, we’re just not as keen or eager to do it as other kingdoms. In a way, we unintentionally keep to ourselves.” 

Well this was interesting to Midoriya. “I see, he responded.

“In contrast to your kingdom,” Shoto continued, “You guys like to travel a lot, right? I know this kingdom is popular for travelers as well. The presence of different cultures are abundant in any kingdom, but during the journey here, I noticed that were just so many, it’s interesting.” 

As regular Yuuei citizen Midoriya, all this praise towards his kingdom from Shoto really made him a proud citizen, but as a prince, he felt an even greater joy. This young scholar truly appreciated and respectfully summarized the beauty of Yuuei. Could Midoriya ask for anymore? 

“Shoto… honestly everything you’re saying makes me feel so… happy.” Midoriya confessed honestly. 

Shoto looked at him and smiled. “Well I supposed you should, as a scholar I assume it’s just natural to appreciate praise about your own kingdom.”

“True,” Midoriya agreed. “But you helped me see it from another point of view, so thank you.” He turned Shoto and returned a kind smile. 

Suddenly for a moment in Shoto’s eyes, Midoriya seemed blinding, for some reason that he didn’t understand. His heart thumped. 

“I’m rather embarrassed,” Midoriya then said, turning away and dropping his head into his arms. 

Shoto snapped out of his mini trance and began observing some trees rustling from the wind in the distance. 

“I don’t know a whole lot about your kingdom. I actually just finished a really intensive history course for Yuuei, and now I’m supposed to start on one for Flamuralis next week. Perhaps next time we meet, I’ll be able to return some compliments.” 

“... I don’t think my kingdom is as beautiful or entertaining as Yuuei.” Shoto revealed honestly. 

“But that’s what you think. Maybe I can give you a different point of view too, like you did for me.” 

“I see… I’ll look forward to that then.” 

A silence grew around them after Shoto said that, and they were left listening to quiet whispers of the wind and each other’s soft breaths. 

So instead of doing or saying anything rash because of the alcohol running through his system, although he was behaving strangely well anyways, Midoriya began to reminisce about the day so far, since it seemed that Shoto didn’t mind the silence. 

First he thought back to his morning that was accompanied by his friends and All Might, who he realized he hadn’t seen since. It would have been nice if he would’ve joined them in the drinking party, but he’s probably busy dealing with the King and missing prince who were apparently at the castle. Then his meeting with the court, who dumped more studies, a week-long trip away from the castle, etiquette lessons, and two three-month long trips to other kingdoms on him.

What he didn’t really bother remembering were the meetings with all the Lords. He appreciated their kindness, but obviously they only show it because they’re obligated to as servants of the crown. 

After all that was this, the drinking party his friends arranged. He enjoyed when they were able to all get together and relax and let their deep thoughts of concerns arise (with the help of alcohol), but the addition of a new stranger made it all the better. 

Oh, Midoriya had almost forgotten that he barely met Shoto that day, a few hours ago. Somehow, that moment felt like days ago. During their conversation here outside, Midoriya felt as if they were really compatible and had been companions for awhile. 

Despite Shoto’s initial cold intimidation, he was actually really kind and thoughtful, or so that’s how Midoriya thought about him. Shoto acknowledged that it was almost his fault for running into Midoriya, and then innocently poked at Midoriya to get familiar with him.. And now just a few moments ago, he was really praising Midoriya’s kingdom and its uniqueness. 

Plus, there was that warm feeling and stimulation in his brain that Midoriya started to experience for the first time because of Shoto. He didn’t quite know the name for it other than acknowledging that it was partially because Shoto was very handsome, but accepted that it wasn’t anything harmful.

It was quite a birthday for the books, but Midoriya suddenly realized that his week long trip away from the castle would start tomorrow. He still didn’t know if Shoto would even stay in the castle or not, but they agreed to spar and read together if he would. Because of the trip, they wouldn’t be able to do those things, and this distressed Midoriya. 

Apparently the distress was written all over his face, because Shoto noticed. “Did you just think of something unpleasant?” He asked. “A moment ago you seemed to be enjoying your thoughts, but now it looks like you’re about to cry,” He added. 

Curse Midoriya's open-book trait. Still, it was nice that Shoto realized he was distressed and offered to hear about it, so Midoriya decided to truthfully voice his thoughts.

“It’s just, I invited you to spar and visit our library, but I just remembered that I’m leaving the castle to-“

Suddenly a knock, a loud impatient knock interrupted their conversation. The two looked back to look at the door, about to walk over and open it because it might’ve been Uraraka, but the people on the other side of it had already opened it. 

It was Uraraka, nothing alarming to Midoriya, but a few faces stood behind her. He couldn’t identify them, but Shoto sure did because he immediately jumped to the side of the balcony on the wall. Midoriya knew better than to look and give him away, so he walked forward into the room to greet them. 

“I think you brought too much help, Uraraka,” he spoke, laughing innocently. She kept a serious face though and stepped aside to let the group behind her pass into the room. 

Behind what seemed like a squadron, a very tall and bulky man came out from behind them, and immediately started observing the room. 

Midoriya felt his heart drop, in a way completely different than when it had swooned into his ass because of Shoto’s charm. This was the king of Flamuralis, standing in front of him, looking obviously irritated. 

The king didn't even bother looking at Midoriya, before he voiced what he had come for. Still, Midoriya fell into a deep bow, feeling the intensity coming from this man. 

“Come out, Shoto Todoroki.” He said, no, commanded in a bold voice. “I was already told you were here, you’re only making a fool of yourself and disgracing the honesty of this enchantress here.” He added.

A few moments passed by, but Midoriya eventually saw Shoto come back inside from the balcony. 

The king clicked his mouth once he saw him, and then a terrible heat fell upon the room. “So this is where you have been all this time? Hiding and spending your time idly with these commoners?” He asked, finally glancing at Midoriya. 

Midoriya would’ve been fine if he hadn’t been seen at all though. Even in his tipsy state, he was able to put a few things together in his head, and the revelation made him feel dizzier than any amount of alcohol that he had consumed. 

The king from Flamuralis was named Enji but referred to as Endeavor. He addressed their scholar friend Shoto as ‘Todoroki’, which is the last name of the royal family of Flamuralis, which could only mean... 

“Foolish prince. Much time was lost due to your untimely rebellion and absence, a sin that you knowingly knew and participated in.” He looked at Midoriya again. “Or perhaps, the sin is on these commoners, who willingly hid you.” 

Midoroya gulped loudly. To people on the outside, he had no authority, no name, no anything, but he never really felt bad about it because outside of the castle, people still respected him as a citizen. Inside the castle, they openly acknowledged him as a prince and well that felt much better. Other than that, he had never really met any royals head on to know what it felt like to be disrespected and treating like nothing. And the first person to do these things to him was the King of Flamuralis. 

Obviously, if things had kept going as they were, Iida, Uraraka, Mei, and Midoriya would have gotten punishment for whatever Endeavor felt like convicting them of. They had some protection because he wasn’t in his kingdom, but if even All Might opposes his judgement, it would look bad on All Might’s part. 

“There will be no need for that,” Shoto spoke, regaining the kings attention. “I willingly left and got lost,” he paused to breathe, “and I don’t regret it.”

Midoriya had straightened out of his bow and looked at the calm, soft expression Shoto, er Todoroki actually, had on his face. He seemed to not fear talking back to the king, which absolutely terrified Midoriya. If it was him, he’d be in a complete dogeza, begging for mercy. The more he thought about it though, the more he respected Todoroki. 

Endeavor just scoffed at Todoroki’s response, and decided what his next action will be. 

“Such an immature act, and during your first trip away from the castle too. What would the king of this kingdom think about you? And with the royal ball coming up so soon, you’ve definitely made a mistake on your behalf.

“Those present in the room, all leave but Todoroki. Continue with your day, commoners. I do not wish to reprimand you because you are of little importance.” He finished.

Immediately, the squadron that was accompanying the prince left the room, and a few of Midoriya's guards carried Iida and Mei out as well. Uraraka led Midoriya to exit, but Midoriya glanced back behind to get one last look at Todoroki.

Todoroki unexpectedly met his gaze, and smiled deeply. ‘He really thinks he has nothing to lose.’ Midoriya thought, returning a grin and nodding to confirm that they’d meet and continue their conversation another day. 

The king saw their connection and turned to stare deadly at Midoriya, who then was quickly ushered out by Uraraka. 

One of Todoroki’s guards exited the door and stood by it, meanwhile Uraraka and Midoriya walked away slowly, both worried.

A few seconds after having left the room, a loud noise came from the room. It sounded like a slash across bare skin, and a cough was heard afterward. 

“No….” Midoriya said quietly, freezing dead in his tracks and staring at Uraraka. 

Her face also revealed that she thought the same thing he was. 

Another slap was heard, as well as the sound of a body hitting one of the walls. Even the walls outside seemed to tremble, and with that, Midoriya had heard enough. 

The rashness that he had failed to bring out during his intoxication had finally returned to do its bidding, so Midoriya began to walk back to the door with the guard, furious. 

In this moment, a lot of things didn’t matter to him. It didn’t matter that he was under the alias as an unimportant scholar, it didn’t matter that he had almost no hint of power over a king, and it didn’t matter that he had barely met Todoroki and fostered feelings for him that day. The mere thought of a man daring to lay a hand on his son inside of Midoriya’s castle made him fume with anger, and his steps got quicker. 

But before he was able to subdue the guard and rip the door open, a hand appeared out of nowhere and halted him. Frustrated he looked up to meet them, ready to reprimand them for stopping him, but the one who stopped him was All Might. 

All Might recognized the look in Midoriya’s eye, and understood what he wanted to do, but he gave the boy a discouraging head-shake, and turned him around so they could walk back to Midoriya’s room together. 

Another thud was heard as they walked away, and Midoriya looked at All Might to silently plead that they do something, but All Might didn’t look at him and continued to walk on.  
Eventually they made their way to Midoriya’s room. As soon as a guard was placed outside the door and the door was closed, Midoriya let out his anger.

“What the hell!??!” he exclaimed, clenching his fists and stomping over to one of the windows in his room. “Did we really just leave and pretend like we had heard nothing? Or suspected nothing??” he asked All Might impatiently. He was feeling so angry that he rushed over to a couch and raised his fist to punch it. In his haste, he managed to knock over a pile of gifts, and they scattered on the floor around him.

Midoriya wasn’t particularly a violent person, in fact, he ever rarely raised his voice in an angry manner, nor raised a hand at anyone or anything who didn’t prove to me a threat. But now, in this current moment, he felt the same anger that he feels when he sees victims being hurt but villains.

All Might just watched him quietly, choosing to remain standing at the door. To others, this might have looked like a childish tantrum, but All Might knew it was way more than that.

“Young Midoriya,” he finally spoke, stepping towards the boy.

Midoriya was so focused in his anger and almost hadn’t noticed that All Might said something, but turned around to meet his king.

All Might relaxed a bit when he realized Midoriya wasn’t completely consumed by anger. After all, anger is usually the predecessor to…

Large tears began to form in the corner of Midoriya’s eyes, and he let himself fall onto the couch, his energy rapidly depleting. He couldn’t face All Might like this.

“I know you’re frustrated, as am I in this current moment, but this is something you cannot deal with, not yet.” All Might started with. He decided to explain everything that had happened, starting with the unexpected arrival of the king and crown prince of Flamuralis. “They arrived at around six, when you were still running around with Iida to meet with more Nobles. Apparently, they found leads on a villain group that had been spreading its influence in the South of our land, and the North of theirs. The group you caught last time were associated with them, and it was frightening to learn that they were hiding in a village so close to the castle and away from the south.

Anyways, so apparently one of the villains that were caught in the group confessed to also having comrades in the Grasslands, the kingdom to our west, so this means the groups influence surrounds us and the kingdoms nearby. Endeavor arrived to ask for permission for his men to cross our southern border if he was pursuing villains. He also plans to travel and propose the same thing to the Grassland king, in case the men of Flamuralis find themselves pursuing villains close to their borders.

 

When we started to discuss the cons of his proposal, his son, Prince Todoroki, slipped out without his father noticing. I believe that’s when you found him and ran into him. He seemed rather bothered when Endeavor started to discuss how casualties would be suffered from the weeding-out-the-villains plans.”

“All Might…” Midoriya sobbed, faced down on the couch, “How… could he? How could he....”

All Might sighed. Midoriya must’ve been surprised at how easily Endeavor resorted to reprimand Todoroki by hurting him. This wasn’t rare among royal families, but since All Might never did anything of the sort with Midoriya, no matter how rebellious the boy unintentionally acted, since All Might didn’t believe violence would teach him anything, nor benefit him.

“You have not learned much about Flamuralis, but it is known that Endeavor is a ruthless king, willing to sacrifice anything as a given moment, whether is be his people or resources. He heeds, just barely, from having that same attitude toward his children, but he resorts to tearing them down physically and psychologically. Prince Todoroki is the youngest heir, but seemed to shine above his siblings because of his quirk, so he became the Crown prince.

Because of this, Endeavor is especially cruel to him, claiming that it’s to teach him how to be a proper king who is worthy of ruling a prosperous land. As you have witnessed though, Todoroki is fairly rebellious towards him, and refuses to hide it from his father. We cannot intervene because this is their problem, and because the tension between our two kingdoms, or rather between us because of the difference between our ideals. It’s frustrating, I know, but in the future, you can save Todoroki.” 

This was heavy, heavier than anything Midoriya had known. Initially, it seemed like Todoroki was in no means in need of saving, but that just proved how deep inside his burdens were. So he took All Might’s words to heart, and pondered about everything he had just heard. 

All Might was right, despite the disgraceful thing that was going on in his castle, they couldn’t act upon it now. That was the tricky thing about formality and royalty, and was what Midoriya hated the most. You couldn’t act based on your feelings like any regular person was. To royals, everything was a waiting game, and the more patient you were, the more you would succeed. This clashed with Midoriya’s natural impulsiveness and sense of justice. He had to undergo much more training to control his emotions and thing properly like All Might does, for the sake of his people. 

Before he knew it, Midoriya was dozing off as millions of thoughts raced hazily through his head. So he got up quickly and walked over to his desk. All might quietly observed him. 

Midoriya proceeded to scribble a few things into a journal before closing it and leaving it to face All Might. 

“I will.” was all Midoriya said, and he bowed. The next second, he fell into his bed, his body finally having exhausted itself. All Might rushed over to place him properly on it. 

He stared at the young boy, and mumbled, “I’m sorry,” before he turned to take his leave. 

——-  
A few hours had passed by since Midoriya unintentionally fell asleep, and it was still nighttime when he woke up in a sweat. 

Instead of trying to go to sleep like his mind demanded, his body sat up in bed. His head started to pound immediately, a usual consequence that he faced for going a little too hard in the drinking game. Initially he had regretted sitting up, but now he knew he wouldn’t have been able to go back to sleep with this headache. 

The thoughts that bothered him before he fell asleep were silenced because of his inability to focus on anything but getting some medicine for his headache, which perhaps was for the best. Midoriya was capable of overthinking himself to death. 

He put on a robe that was on his chair and proceeded to walk out of his room. The guard that was stationed outside immediately met him and asked what he needed.

“I’m just going to visit the infirmary and get some medicine,” Midoriya sleepily responded.

“Sir, you should’ve stayed in bed. I heard about last night's celebration, I will have someone bring some medicine for you immediately-“

“No, I insist I go,” Midoriya cut him off. “My body needs to burn up the rest of the alcohol, so walking will be beneficial.” 

The guard wanted to protest, but he knew Midoriya wouldn’t falter, so he nodded and resumed his post. 

The headache subsided a tiny bit as he continued to the infirmary. He didn’t converse with anyone once he got there, not even the doctor, but he got his medicine and began to take it under her instructions. The doctor did notice the bruising on his knuckles though, and insisted to put some ointment on it and wrap it up. 

Midoriya let her do so and thanked her before starting to return to his room. 

Bless Yuuei’s medical advances, because right now they contributed towards lessening the pounding of Midoriya’s head almost immediately. It still hurt, naturally, hangovers aren’t easy to get rid of and it was still too early to eat a large meal to help get rid of it, but now he had some of his senses back and began to think. 

Subconsciously, he found himself in front of the room they were in for the drinking party, and he let himself in. 

Everything was still arranged in the same way it was last night, except that a few ribbons had fallen from one of the walls. The couch also seemed to have been moved. No doubt that it was because of that.

Midoriya stepped outside onto the balcony, trying to prevent anger some consuming his thoughts. He remember the conversation between himself and Todoroki before things took a turn for the worst. 

And then he remembered that revelation.

So this whole time, Midoriya had been getting close and comfortable with the Crown Prince of Flamuralis, the son of an evil king. 

He groaned when he thought about all the embarrassing things he said and did, wincing particularly when he remembered how they met by knocking each other into the ground. He thought about how many times he used his first name, something that was only done by the closest of the closest to a royal. To put things into better perspective, not even Iida called Midoriya “Izuku”. He had pretended to play a scholar so easily, much like Midoriya had. 

So Todoroki would be either an ally or enemy to him in the future, which sort of brightened and terrified Midoriya. Todoroki seemed much more advanced than him in terms of reading people and presenting himself well, despite being younger than Midoriya. 

Suddenly Midoriya thought about the list of activities they agreed to do, and added ‘learn prince things’ to it. He looked out into the land and began to feel more positivity. Todoroki could certainly help him grow into a better prince. Now they have a lot more in common, even though Midoriya couldn’t reveal that he himself was a prince. 

So tonight wasn’t the end of the world as Midoriya had been thinking before he passed out. Today would pass, and the future would bring more days where he would most certainly meet with Todoroki a handful of times, and learn how to save him. 

The information that All Might has given him regarding the villain situation suddenly popped into his mind, but he quickly thought about Todoroki’s brilliant smile, and they left. 

For now, at least, Midoriya had discovered that thinking about his admiration for Todoroki could distract him enough to change the direction of his thoughts, which was really beneficial. 

He began to learn forward and hang his upper body from the railing and looked down, just to stretch his back since he was starting to feel sore, and a sight below him surprised him enough to yelp. A familiar patch of white and red hair greeted his vision. Todoroki was staying in a room below the floor that Midoriya was on.

Immediately Midoriya wanted to call out to him, but Todoroki appeared to be thinking as he looked out to the land. If Midoriya felt bad because of what happened to him, Todoroki would be feeling thrice that amount. 

Still, Midoriya wanted to climb down and inspect him, ask if he was okay, take him to the infirmary to treat any bruises, assure that he would be there for Todoroki for the rest of their lives.

And Todoroki had seemed to hear his silent thoughts because he looked up to see Midoriya.

Midoriya jumped, not having expected their reunion to be so soon. “Todoroki…” he said quietly, subconsciously putting on a sad expression. 

Todoroki sighed but didn’t look away. “Thought I told you to call me Shoto.” He responded. 

Midoriya blushed, surely he wasn’t serious…  
Suddenly he felt that maybe Todoroki wanted some company, so he prepared himself to jump onto Todoroki’s balcony.

When Todoroki saw this, he confirmed Midoriya’s suspicion and stepped aside, giving Midoriya more room to land. “Don’t make too much noise.” Was all he offered. 

So Midoriya climbed to the other side of the railing and slowly lowered himself, keeping hold of the railings bars. When he was low enough, he swung his body and let go of the railing when he saw the spot he would be able to land on. Swiftly after his feet made contact with the ground, he bent his knees to absorb more of the noise, and just like that he and Todoroki were on the same balcony once again. 

“Not bad,” Todoroki complimented, walking over to the railing once again. 

Midoriya brushes himself off, and found out that he couldn’t muster a word to Todoroki, for reasons you can guess. Which was okay because silence between them wasn’t uncomfortable. 

“I’m guessing you didn’t walk away fast enough,” Todoroki announced. “I told him that bastard to wait, but I guess my response really riled him up.” 

Then Todoroki did something unexpected. He laughed quietly. 

Midoriya questioned his sanity and state of being at the moment. 

Todoroki guessed his response and continued talking. “I know, how the hell am I able to laugh at a time like this. It’s simple,” he paused to take in a breath and let it out slowly, “In a simple way, I’m used to it. It doesn’t hurt. I think when I realize that I’ve bothered him, my self-satisfaction is all that’s running through my body, which entertains me enough to resist any harm that he tries to do to my, psychologically. It’s a way to cope, I guess.” 

Midoriya couldn’t even begin to explain to himself how sad that was. 

“I’m serious,” Todoroki offered. “I’m not weak, Deku, and I refuse to let him affect me in any way.”

Such strong mental fortitude. Worry and concern fell away from Midoriya and were replaced with more admiration for Todoroki. Also, he understood that it was time for a different topic of conversation, since Todoroki insisted on getting over it. 

“I can’t believe… you want me to call you by your first name,” Midoriya said. “That’s…”

“For some reason, I like hearing it from you.” Todoroki responded. “Maybe it’s your accent.”

“Accent?” Midoriya blurted. It was probably true though, different kingdoms were bound to have different tongues. 

Todoroki shrugged. “I guess. Anyways, you’re leaving the castle tomorrow, aren’t you?” 

Oh, right. Midoriya nodded. “For a week. How did you find out?”

“You mentioned it briefly before we were interrupted. I asked one of your guards to confirm and they did. Are you excited?” 

Midoriya gulped. He was, but he also secretly longed to remain because of the person next to him. “I was. Truthfully, I’ve been in this castle for six months and haven’t been allowed to travel, because of some foolish actions of mine, but now I find myself with concern.” Might as well be truthful.

“Ah,” Todoroki understood. “Don’t burden yourself with me, there is nothing you could do or could have changed. But I leave this morning anyways, we have to visit that other kingdom.” 

“... I see.” Midoriya responded. He wasn’t sure about that ‘nothing you could do’ part, but they were in no situation for that to be argued. ‘I will save you’ was all Midoriya thought. 

They remained in silence again, until the horizon across from them started to bleed an orange tint. 

“... and morning has come,” Todoroki announced. 

“Yeah,” Midoriya confirmed. “Well, I hope your travels go well.” Midoriya wasn’t a fan of goodbyes, especially to attractive prince friends. 

“Yours as well,” Todoroki returned, seemingly feeling equal to what Midoriya was thinking. “Now, how will you leave? If you exit through my door, that would be highly suspicious…” he teased.

Midoriya blushed, again. “I… um… I’ll climb back.” He gestured to the balcony above. 

“Impossible,” Todoroki scoffed. 

Not really though. 

“Watch.” Midoriya instructed, climbing onto the railing of Todoroki’s balcony. He bent his knees again, and jumped while simultaneously using a small, small percentage of his quirk, and propelled himself up high enough to grab onto the bars of the railing above. He quickly climbed up and then settled into the balcony, extending past the railing to look down at Todoroki. He looked impressed.

“Well that’s that,” Todoroki said, crossing his arms. Midoriya grinned down at him. “Don’t think I don’t have my suspicious about you, ‘Deku’. I will think about it, and you will tell me more about yourself and your true motives when I return for the ball.”

‘Oh,’ Midoriya thought. He had almost forgotten about that, along with everything else in his mind that didn’t have to do with Todoroki while he was speaking with Todoroki. “As you wish, your highness,” he responded.

And with that, the two walked back into the rooms, content with the promise that they would see each other again soon and ready to take on their duties until then.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> holy shit do I love writing themmmm  
> how fun was that drinking party? i felt like it needed more detail, but i was satisfied with how it came out.  
> I LOVE MEI AND URARAKA what a concept
> 
> so i want to make it clear that tdrk & deku have this mutual attraction going on from the start, b/c they havent been able to go through hardships together and have those feelings come from that, which is how it is in the anime  
> but that will come... all in good time my lovelies...
> 
> so next chapter: the royal ball?  
> etiquette WHO?
> 
> See you next time, PLUS ULTRA!!


	6. Outside

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Midoriya reminisces about the fateful day he was first introduced to the castle, and receives some good news regarding a very special person in his life.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Welcome back!!  
> Thank you for the kudos and especially for the comments! I love reading your opinions so I can either fix or continue how I'm writing the story, so thank you for helping me!  
> Also reading about your excitement makes me so happy... sooo happy, so I get excited as well!
> 
> So this chapter, I remembered an idea and just ran with it. I know in my last notes I mentioned that this chpt would be about the royal ball, but I realized I hadn't given any more information regarding Inko (Deku's mom) or how he was introduced to the castle, so tah-dah~~ here's the background information.
> 
> Also a lil format tip:   
> \- means a short cut in the story, like changing their environment or jumping a few hours ahead  
> \------- Is a longer jump, like a flashback or jumping a day/days/months ahead
> 
> That being said, enjoy! See you at the end :)

“Your highness, if you could just focus for a second…” Iida pleaded, 

Oh but Midoriya couldn't focus on what Iida was trying to say, not even for a second.

He had returned to his room with a clear mind after having confirmed that Todoroki was okay. Although he did feel slightly worried about Todoroki’s next trip to the Grasslands kingdom, he was comforted by the strong words spoken by the hiding prince, and bid his farewells and best wishes for him.

That clarity of mind only lasted for a minute though, before all his thoughts started to catch up with him and make their presence strongly known in his head. Originally, Midoriya wanted to continue sleeping, which would have been easy thanks to the drowsiness that the medicine he took gave him, but instead he found himself pacing his floor restlessly. 

Initially what bothered him the most was how he didn’t find out Todoroki was the crown prince of Flamuralis until the king, Endeavor, revealed it. Of course, only after Midoriya had spent the entire day calling the prince casually by his first name. He still felt shame, but even after that revelation, Todoroki still insisted Midoriya call him Shoto. If the prince himself was requesting this, then Midoriya had to obey and didn't have to feel so bad. 

Next what bothered him is how Endeavor treated Todoroki. although All Might explained the situation fairly well. It was shocking to Midoriya that royalty still looked to violence to reprimand heirs because he had never seen or heard about it, and even if he let himself go through the emotions of anger and resentment towards the king, there was nothing he could do about it in the present times. 

During that conversation, All Might had also revealed information about a large group of villains that seemingly had influence across not only their kingdom and the two around them, but also those across the seas and mountains. If Midoriya was clueless about anything, which truthfully is not a whole lot, it was about those other kingdoms far from them. He wished he had been able to ask All Might for more information, but the version of himself during that conversation was an even bigger mess than the current version of himself, and couldn’t have handled that information. So, he sought to find out more later through Iida during their trip, and eventually ask All Might again.

Several other things such as the new history lessons, etiquette classes, what Iida said to him that night, and royal ball burdened him, but while he let all those previous thoughts swarm in his head, he had been staring at the envelope sitting on his desk that spelled ‘Inko.’ For a few moments, the other thoughts subsided and he walked over to hold it.

It had been awhile since he had heard from his mom, about five years to be exact, so seeing a letter from her suddenly after that long was surprising. He guessed that it was because sixteenth birthdays symbolize the coming of age for boys. From sixteen and above, boys are classified as young men and they are able to participate in drinking, proper jobs, higher education, and knighthood if they choose. 

He decided to open it and read it then and there, but his head still seemed full to the brink with other concerns, so he decided to try out a newly acquired trick to make himself blank out. He thought about that brilliant first smile that Todoroki had shown him when they were in the infirmary, and just like that, Midoriya was focused. 

Midoriya sat down at the desk to begin opening the envelope, and started to reminisce about his first trip to the castle, twelve years ago.

\--------

“Izuku honey… we’re here.” Inko whispered quietly, giving the young boy a few gentle shakes. The sky was still colored dark when Inko noticed the outline of the castle getting bigger and bigger, certainly they were barely a few hours into the night. She looked to the driver of the carriage, who confirmed their arrival by nodding at her.

Izuku squirmed a little in his mother's lap, and had heard her voice far far away. With a few more whispers and nudges, he began to stretch in Inko’s arms, and yawned loudly. He opened his eyes with ease, since everything was still dark, and looked up into his mother's face. 

“Good morning,” she greeted him with a large smile.   
“Good… morning,” he responded back to her, yawning loudly again afterwards. “We’re here?” he asked, rubbing his eyes a bit with his hands. 

When they first started the trip, Midoriya was ecstatic when he learned they’d be traveling specifically to the castle. He had read much about it, and studied even more when he found out. The journey was very entertaining, he got to see so many knew things and ended up almost filling an entire notebook about his experiences, but it was still a very long trip. Before he knew it, his eyes were closing and opening repeatedly, and next thing he knows, he was waking up to the soft whispers of his mom’s voice.

“Yes,” Inko confirmed, pointing to the outline of the castle in the distance. Midoriya’s eyes suddenly grew wide, and he fiddled around in his mother's lap. He eventually climbed off and just stared at the castle and all the landmarks around it. 

The castle was very large, but the mountain it sat on was significantly larger. It was still dark so Midoriya couldn’t identify any colors, but there was also tall gate surrounding all the sides of the castle. There was a trail that led up to the castle, which is where they’d soon find themselves, but not before crossing a beautiful forest. In front of the castle, to Midoriya’s right, was a vast lake that seemed to extend forever, not showing any hint of land from the other side. So far, the sole environment around the castle made him bubble with excitement. He could only imagine what it looked like inside. 

After about another hours worth of traveling, they were finally arriving at the main gate. 

The carriage stopped and Inko began to organize some papers in a folder. “Izuku,” she called Midoriya, getting his attention. “Mommy has to talk to some of the guards, okay? Do you want to meet them too?”

“Yes!” Midoriya exclaimed, fixing his hair and clothes. He really admired the guards, mostly because their sole purpose was to protect the people in the castle, and that included All Might. Anyone who protected All Might was seen worthy of respect in young Midoriya’s mind.

They both stepped out of the carriage and were immediately greeted by a group of six guards. The first thing Midoriya eyed were their swords which lay in their covers and hanged from their left hip. 

They conversed for a bit, too quietly for Midoriya to listen, so he opted to study what the inside of the gate looked like. There were trees immediately on both sides of the inside of the gate, and they extended up so high that they created some sort of arch above. That was all he could see though, because the darkness made it harder to see anything past a few meters from him.

“Very well,” one of the guards suddenly announced, returning the folder back to Inko who must’ve handed it to them earlier. “It’s quite early, so most of the court is still asleep, but for the meantime we will have you escorted to a room by the courtyard in the middle of the castle. Unless you prefer to wait in the carriage.”

“The room would be fine, right Izuku?” she asked, looking at Midoriya.

After he had finished examining the gate, he settled and stood next to his mother. He wasn’t really paying attention to what they were saying because he was keen on imagining what the inside of the castle looked like. But when his mother seemed to have asked him something, he enthusiastically responded with “Yes!”

They retrieved their belongings from the carriage and bid the driver goodbye before being escorted through the gate. 

Despite it still being really early, there were many people walking around inside, ranging from knights to guards to Lords and servants. They walked along a hallway that led them to the left, and then took a turn to the right and continued to walk for a few meters. Eventually another turn to the right led them to the courtyard, which had an abundance of trees and walkways. 

It was a square clearing that was in the middle of the castle, so several floors towered over them. It was a beautiful sight, and Inko thought Midoriya would surely spend his free time there, observing everyone who passes by and getting lost in his thoughts. This thought made her feel a bit sad.

Inko had been ignoring her trivial feelings the entire trip there, convincing herself that she did the right thing by bringing Midoriya here. 

After all, it was no coincidence that the court and king agreed to inspect Midoriya and potentially keep him in the castle. In fact, it was really Inko who was accepting an invitation from them who wanted Midoriya. 

Their desire for Midoriya comes from a long history involving betrayal and compensation.

Inko’s thoughts were interrupted when the guard that was leading them gestured to a room with an open door. “This is where you’ll be staying for now.” he explained.

Inko observed the room briefly before stepping inside, with Midoriya following promptly after her. The room was spacious, but seemed more like a waiting room than a bedroom. There was no bed, only tables and couches. Inko suspected that it was because they didn't want them falling asleep. Guess the court wanted them to be awake so that everything could be done quickly.

She thanked the guards and they told her that a servant would come and retrieve them for the meeting with the court. After that announcement, they left the two alone.

“This is so… cool mama!” Midoriya exclaimed, running around the room. He inspected all of the furniture that was present, opened up and closed every cabinet he could reach, sat on all of the different couches and chairs. Midoriya didn't really need anything to have fun on his own.

“Careful not to make yourself sick, Midoriya.” Inko advised, sitting on one of the couches on the far right of the room. 

Midoriya stopped running and sat besides her, hugging her and snuggling into her side. “When do you think they’ll wake up?” he asked. Before she could hug him back and answer, he slid off the couch and went over to his bag, pulling out his notebook and a book. He then walked over to one of the tables and lay them on there.

Inko looked at him with curiosity. “I’m not sure honey, maybe in an hour or two.” She knew they’d probably take longer, though.

“Okay.” Midoriya responded, already making himself busy by writing into his notebook.

Since Midoriya was already entertaining himself, Inko began to get lost in her thoughts again. She wondered how the court would react to her reappearance, as well as what they would think about Midoriya. It goes without saying that they already have some prejudice about him due to what happened long ago, even though he had nothing to do with it.

Slowly but surely, all those events that she swore to leave in the past began to creep into her mind. Paired with her exhaustion from not having slept during the journey, she began to dream about her past life, and her past husband.

As promised, a knock was eventually heard on the door. “Mommy,” Midoriya called out to Inko, pulling on her skirt. Her eyes shot open, and also heard the continuous knocking on the door. She got up and opened it, locking eyes with the servant who had come to retrieve them. 

“Are you ready to meet with the court?” She asked Inko, suspecting that they weren’t because of the bags under Inko’s eyes. 

But Inko replied with “Of course,” and began to instruct Midoriya to bring along his bag with his notebooks and reading material. After all, Inko had been thinking about what she would say to the court during this meeting for four years.

-  
“Inko Midoriya,” spoke one of the judges, summoning her to step forward into the middle of the room where they could all see her. 

She complied and stood before all of them, bowing deeply before properly introducing herself. “Inko Midoriya of the Shizuoka village, Wife of Hisashi and Mother of Izuku present. I humbly thank you for this meeting.”

Most of the newer judges remained emotionless once she mentioned who she was married too, but the eyes of the older judges had narrowed down on her slightly. “It is us who should thanking you…. for bringing the child.” The main judge spoke. So they wanted to get straight to business, huh?

“Yes…” Inko responded. “I brought him here to be inspected by your people. He had reached his fourth year a few months ago, and thus far has shown great intelligence for a child of his age. I believe he would greatly benefit you and the castle in the future.”

The judges remained silent while they pondered her words, but it was only out of respect. No matter what she had said, they had already decided that they would test the child to see if her claims were true, he was expected to be intelligent, after all.

“I see,” the main judge spoke again. 

“To show authenticity of my claim, Izuku has brought along a notebook that he used throughout our journey here, as well as some reading material that interested him.” Inko added.

“...Very well” the judge spoke again. “Bring the child in,” he then commanded.

One of the guards present in the room walked over to the giant doors and opened them, revealing a very patient Midoriya standing just outside of the room. He understood that he was being invited to walk inside, so he didn’t hesitate to take those steps before he was told to. He clenched his bag at his side.

“Welcome Midoriya,” one of the other judges greeted warmly. She seemed to be the only female judge there present. 

Midoriya silently bowed before stating his full name as well. “I, Izuku Midoriya humbly present myself, your honors” he spoke. 

The judges looked pleased. “Izuku, we were told you brought some notebooks and books along on your journey, may we see them?” 

“Of course.” Midoriya responded, pulling them out of his bags and giving them to a guard who was near him. The guard took them and brought them to the main judge, who inspected the notebook first. His expression slowly started to show surprise. 

“... Was this a new notebook when you started?” He asked the boy, flipping through several pages. The judge guessed it couldn’t have just been from that day, the whole notebook was almost filled to the end. 

But much to his surprise, Midoriya confirmed that it was just from the day. The other judges just observed the main judge silently. Eventually he handed the notebook down, letting the others take a look at it. They all looked equally surprised. 

Inko remained quiet, but was praising Midoriya in her head. She had no doubt that he was impressing them with just his notebook. They don’t even know a quarter of the things he can do yet. 

Next, the book he had brought was being passed along. Again, the judges just kept switching between looking at the book and then glancing at Midoriya. 

The books title was ‘A tale of the Ages’. It was a fiction and non-fiction book that told the story about a village that had accredited enough influence to eventually spread out and become a kingdom, explaining all the factors that led to a successful kingdom, such as the importance crops, jobs amongst the public, and the role of leaders in their respective regiments, including the king. Was Midoriya really capable of reading something like this? 

“Midoriya,” the female judge called to him. 

“Yes, your honor?” Midoriya responded, facing her, ready to answer any question she might have. He guessed it would’ve been about the book. 

“Do you know anything about your father?”

Midoriya was confused by this question. “Um…. no your honor. I have a ‘mo’-ther, not a ‘fa’-ther.” was his response.

The judge opened her mouth to probably clarify her question, but suddenly a figure from behind their panel started to appear. 

“Midnight…” the figure began to speak, “there is no need to question him about that. Do you understand?”

The figure was revealed to be All Might, the king of Yuuei. Of course, anyone could easily tell because of the authority always present in his tone, but it was Midoriya’s first time seeing and hearing him in person. He tried his hardest not to gasp, but still an excited squeal erupted from his throat. All Might heard this and smiled at him.

A million thoughts raced through Midoriya’s head, racing from questions he wanted to ask All Might to stories he had heard and read about All Might. He couldn’t believe that the king, the hero of his kingdom and recipient of his dedicated admiration was in the same room as him, looking over him. Before the trip, Inko had been reminding Midoriya that they were going to meet with important people, so he had to be very polite with everyone he would meet, but never did she mention that they would eventually be in the presence of All Might himself.

“Yes, your highness.” Midnight responded, casting her eyes downward. 

The notebook was passed along to All Might, who briefly read a few pages from it and then adjusted his focus back on Midoriya. “So, you really enjoyed your trip here, didn’t you, young Midoriya?” he asked.

“Yes!” Midoriya couldn't help from voicing his excitement. He did notice that the volume of his voice was unrespectful, so he took large breaths before trying to speak again. “Mother and I met many new people during our trip, and we also ate a lot of food that I had never seen before. But what I loved the most was how pretty it looked outside the castle. There are so many resources around, it really looked magical,” Midoriya swooned, thinking back to when they had arrived that morning. Subconsciously he folded his hands in front of him and started to rock back and forth gently.

He was so cute.

“Midoriya, would you come with me on a walk outside? I’d like to show you some things,” All Might told him.

Midoriya snapped out of his thoughts and nodded furiously. So then All Might began to walk out of the room, extending out a hand for Midoriya to hold, which the young boy did. Before they had exited the room, All Might glanced at the main judge and nodded. Then the two were followed out by two guards, and left in the room was Inko alone with the court.

“He is… remarkable.” the judge told Inko. “The fact that All Might is already showing him around is a good sign, and I have no doubt that he will pass the tests we have set out for him. We already see how he would become a fine addition for this castle, however there is still a complication. How do we we know he does not have the treacherous blood of his fathers?”

Inko winced. She had prepared for them to bring this up, but it still hurt to hear them say something like that about Midoriya. “Your honor, did you not feel it? The purity in that boy? It seems that the king has, for him to have offered to spend time alone with him already. You continue to judge a child for the mistakes of a person he has never even met before?”

The judge thought for a second. “Inko, are you familiar with the nature of quirks?”

Quirks? “Other than the basics, not very much, no.” Inko responded. Quirks were only met for people who were in royalty or related to royalty anyways, a common person like her wouldn’t know. 

“Surely you know about how they are blood-related, passed on from generation to generation within a family’s blood. There is no harm is suggesting that traits are passed down like that as well, such as the case might be with Hisashi and Izuku.”

“Surely you jest.”

“That is bold of you to say, Inko.”

Inko realized her mistake, and apologized. The judges still looked at her with conviction. 

This time, judges other than Midnight and the main one began to speak to Inko. “There is no doubt that the castle needs brilliant young men like Izuku, however what the castle also doesn’t need is a risk.”

So it didn’t seem that they would let go of that reasoning anytime soon, but Inko couldn’t settle for that. She had to fight for herself, for Midoriya.

“It’s not safe for him out there,” Inko said quietly. It was the reason she had decided to bring Midoriya, after all.

“Then why not move elsewhere?”

“Anywhere would bring the same dangers, your honor. You know that.”

“Are you insulting the peace and safety that His Highness All Might has achieved and spread throughout the kingdom?”

Inko remained quiet for a minute. “No, your honor. But true leaders of the kingdom would understand that no matter how perfect or safe things might be, evil will always be lurking and ready to attack. Being ready for all of that is the common duty of everyone, as well as it is mine, as the mother of my child.”

“Who’s to say the child isn’t one of those sources of ‘evil’.”

“… I beg you…” Inko resorted to say. “I would do anything for my kingdom, and I will do anything for Izuku.”

The judges remained silent, but then began to speak amongst themselves. Since the beginning they had a certain idea in their minds in case Inko went so far as to offer herself in return of accepting Midoriya in the castle. So they decided to use that idea.

“The sins of Hisashi Midoriya will not be forgotten, but if Izuku were to be accepted into the castle, we have a task that you and only yourself could do for us, for the kingdom. Do you accept?”

Inko thought for a quick second, but found herself agreeing before she knew it, thinking back to Midoriya.

For the next hour or so, they explained thoroughly what her task would be. She stood and listened attentively the entire time, conflicting emotions building in her as each minute passed by.

“You would begin immediately starting tomorrow, are you prepared to do this?”

“...Yes… your honor.”

-

“What is your favorite food, Midoriya?” All Might asked. The two had been walking around the castle for quite some time now, All Might introducing young Midoriya to everyone they had happened to run into. He was also testing the young boy’s memory by asking about landmarks they had passed before. So far, Midoriya seemed to remember every name and every landmark, which was excellent. 

“Ah…” Midoriya thought for a moment. “It’s definitely a bowl of rice and pork and egg that mother makes,” he responded. “It's so delicious! You would love it too, King All Might.”

All Might smiled. “I would very much like to try it, Midoriya.”

Midoriya nodded. “Maybe she can make some tonight for us,” he voiced aloud.

This made All Might feel a little sympathy in his heart. If everything goes according to the courts plan, maybe Inko wouldn’t even be there that night, and that anticipated pork bowl would never be made for the young boy.

Initially All Might had opposed what the court suggested for Inko to do. Certainly there was another way to prove the family’s loyalty. If it were up to All Might himself, he’d have probably even kept both of them in the castle. But that wasn’t the case, he was binded by the court royals, who have the equal right of authority that he has. 

Suddenly they were joined by a guard, who announced that it was time to join the court again.

-

Once they made it back, the court informed All Might of Inko’s agreement, 

All Might looked at Inko with a hint of pity, but then put on a professional face again. “Very well. It is time to test Izuku then.”

“Test…?” Midoriya asked, looking at Inko with a confused face.

“Don’t worry, young Midoriya. I am sure you will complete them with ease,” All Might reassured him. 

All Might was praising him, and Midoriya understood this, so he enthusiastically announced he was ready for them.

The tests were just reading and writing assignments. Midoriya had to use his young sense of judgement on a series of situations, ranging from conflicts regarding rights of the villagers to decision-making in court cases. Usually, an educated child wasn’t introduced to either of those subjects until they were ten, but of course, Midoriya was an exception. He was completing these in a room, meanwhile Inko, the king, and the main judge observed him from outside.

Midoriya was answering the questions with ease, as excepted. The main judge was confused about something though, and turned to speak to Inko. “It seemed that Izuku had not known about the tests until we told him about them beforehand, did you not warn him about them before you arrived?” he asked her.

“No.” responded Inko. She looking lovingly at Midoriya, who was given sheet after sheet of paper. “Whether I told him or not, it doesn't change the fact that he’d understand and press forward to overcome any obstacles in his way.”

The judge looked at her with wide eyes as she continued to watch Midoriya. Suddenly All Might began to chuckle. “How’s that for ‘food for thought’, Aizawa?” he asked. Aizawa, the main judge, silently just focused on Midoriya again.

They continued watching for a few minutes, until Midoriya sat back in his chair and sighed loudly. The testing was over.

\- 

“You’re leaving… mama?” Midoriya asked again, sitting up in his bed. 

Inko sighed as she continued to pack her bag. She wanted to face Midoriya and properly explain, but she knew that the moment she’d look into his eyes…

“Yup,” she tried to say as calmly as she could, folding a few things before she spoke again. “It’s like how I would do back at home, remember? I’ll be back, soon.” 

Well, that was a lie.

“I see…” Midoriya said, laying down on his bed once again. 

The room got really silent, and Inko thought that Midoriya had fallen asleep. She finally mustered the courage to face him, so she stood up and began to walk towards the bed, and noticed that he hadn’t really fallen asleep. “My my, you’re still awake?” she asked him playfully, walking over to him anyways. “You did so well today honey, you really impressed all of them, even the king.” She sat on the side of the bed and patted his head. For the short amount of time remaining for them to be together, she decided to be strong for Midoriya. That was all she could do now as his mother.

Midoriya leaned into the touch. “He was so nice,” he responded. “Is it true that we’re going to live here now, forever?” he asked. 

Nobody had really explained to him that yes, they would, or rather he would. Since he was a smart child, he’d understand eventually, even if nobody told him. Still, it was rather cruel to leave him in the dark like this. How many children without mothers grew up to be villains and wrong doers? Too many, certainly. But the fact that’d he’d be living in the castle already promised that he wouldn’t have a future that even hinted at those possibilities in the slightest. 

“...Yes.” was all Inko responded with. She continued to pat his head.

“I'm so sleepy from all that reading,” he confessed. “But, can you tell me a story anyways mama? For some reason, I really want to hear one.”

Inko almost gave into the crying that her heart was doing. It was like Midoriya knew that he was going to be left alone after tonight. No longer would she be able to wake him up with soft ‘good morning’s and gentle kisses. No longer would she be able to listen to his ramblings about the animals or scenery that’s he would encounter around the house. No longer would she be able to say ‘I love you’ after traveling and playing with him in the village. No longer could she make his favorite pork cutlet bowls, that she made with so much love and enthusiasm, and then hear him say ‘I’m so full!’. No longer could she share her wisdom that’d she’d learn from people on her journeys. No longer could she watch her child, her only son, the light of her life, grow. 

But he would grow, even without her. He’d serve the kingdom, and be served by the kingdom in return. She had to let him go.

“Very well,” she responded, letting the tears form in her eyes. She refused to let her voice falter though, and began the tale. Midoriya sat up slightly to make sure he wouldn’t fall asleep so soon.

“Once upon a time, there was a young boy who grew up in a prosperous kingdom. His father was a knight, and his mother worked as a scholar for the kingdom. The boy grew up happily in his village, but wanted to do great things like his mother and father. So eventually when he was a young teen, he moved out and started a journey by himself. He promised to himself that he would become a great influence to the castle, and started to do things like go on missions with the soldiers of the different villages he visited. Eventually he learned many skills, like sword-fighting and battle planning. This wasn’t enough for him though, he was hungry to learn more and more, so he also got involved in politics, and learned how the law works.

The kingdom was peaceful, but there was conflict always lurking amongst it. While the kingdom grew prosperously, neighboring kingdoms got jealous and envied how good the kingdom was doing, so they began a war with it.”

“War.” Midoriya repeated, eyes wide awake. 

“Yes. It’s when two kingdoms, or more, fight each other for various reasons. So it started out bad, really heavy for the young man’s kingdom. But with the knowledge he had been acquiring his whole life he presented many battle plans and ways for people in the villages to protect themselves. Slowly, the tide began to change, and his kingdom was starting to win. The other kingdom realized that they were losing because of this young man, so many attempts on his life were made. But he never gave up, and the war got so heated that a dragon appeared to help the young man!!”

“A dragon!?!” exclaimed Midoriya. “So cool!”

“Yes! And with the dragons help, they ended up winning the war. Because of all the help that the young man did, the kingdom decided to crown him as the new King! Think of that Midoriya, imagine a commoner like us chosen to be a king?”

“Sounds like… All Might!” Midoriya said. “If anyone could be a dragon, it’d definitely be king All Might.” Midoriya said proudly. Then he yawned. “That was a good one mama. I’m gonna write about it in my notebook.”

Inko smiled. The tears had dried enough for her to be able to look at him in his eyes. She lovingly grazed his right cheek with her hand, thinking about how she wouldn't feel the soft peach fuzz on his face for long time, nor be able to count the freckles that decorated his face. “I love you,” she told him.

“Love you too mama,” he responded, getting snuggled into bed. He wa ready to sleep, and it was almost time for Inko to leave.

“Izuku, can you promise me something?” she suddenly asked, hoping he wasn’t too tired to respond.

To her relief, he did respond. “Of course mama.”

“Promise me… you’ll have fun every day here, and make lots of friends, and help lots of people. Okay?”

“Mmm… okay.” he said.

With that, he blinked a few times and then found himself asleep. Inko said again, “I love you”, in the silence of the room.

 

\--------

 

“Midoriya….. Midoriya…. Midoriya!” Iida said more loudly, finally shaking Midoriya out of his trance.

Midoriya just looked at him confused. 

“Are you alright?” Iida asked. “Look, you’re...crying.” he pointed out, pointing at the tears that were beginning to fall down Midoriya’s face.

“...Oh” was all Midoriya said in return. 

Iida had pulled out a handkerchief for Midoriya and handed it to him. The prince took it and thanked him, beginning to wipe the tears away. The ‘I love you’ from his mother just sang themselves over and over again in his mind, until they quietly subsided to make room for his focus on the letter.

“Sorry Iida,” he said, opening it once again. “I just… have to read this first. Then we’ll do whatever you need me to do,” he promised. 

“Take your time,” Iida said encouragingly, patting Midoriya’s back and then sitting on one of the couches. He began to examine the papers he had been carrying.

‘Izuku,’ the letter began. It was shorter than Midoriya had expected, 

‘Happy 16th Birthday Honey!!  
You’re finally of age, oh how envious I am of everyone who got to hug you and gift you things.  
How are you doing?   
Ah, it’s kind of lame for me to say that, since I can’t really get a response back…  
Except I can! Now!  
Please keep this a secret, because not even the court knows… but I’ve become acquaintances with someone who travels to and fro from this kingdom to yours, which is why I am sending this letter and writing so carefree.  
I look forward to hearing about your stories and how you’ve grown over the years.  
The thing I’ve feared the most over the years is you forgetting about me… or thinking of me as a stranger. But now, those things will not happen I hope.  
I am making this short because I want to send it and receive one as soon as possible, so please, write to me as soon as you can.  
Give Iida your letter and he will know what to do.  
I love you, son.

Inko’

“I-IIDA!” Midoriya yelled, getting up and running over to him.

“What?! What is it your highness!?” Iida yelled back.

“Did you- did you know about this? About my mother??”  
Iida adjusted his glasses smiled. “I know everything.”

“Iida….” Midoriya trailed off, reading the last few lines of the letter.

The letter he had from her that was on his wall was from five years ago. It was written very formally, since apparently the court had given her restrictions on what to say. Until this day, Midoriya had not been told where she was, or what she was doing, Just that she was far away from here, and that it was because of his father's fault. But now, things would change. For the better hopefully.

Midoriya ran back to his desk and furiously pulled out some paper and a quill. In the back of his mind, his thoughts suggested that maybe this was a hoax, and whoever was doing it was trying to get information from him by pretending to be his mother. Who could it be? Who knows. But Midoriya took this into consideration and only wrote light details of his new life, and asked for his mother to respond to a few questions he knew only she would be able to know.

His letter ended with the following:  
‘I love you mom. I love you so much.   
Please write back as soon as you can as well, with the answers to these questions.   
I’m so excited mom.   
I miss you so much.  
I love you.  
Izuku’

“Iida,” he said seriously, finishing up the seal on the envelope. Iida stood by him and waited for it, tucking it into his tunic once he was finished. Midoriya was absolutely beaming. “I love you.” he said.

Iida blushed. “So now will you listen to me?”

“Of course.” Midoriya said, but not before giving Iida a grand hug. 

Again in the back of his mind, Midoriya felt a bit of guilt. So the court didn’t know about his new form of communication with his mother, and it was strange that Iida was willing to go behind the crown’s back to do this for him too, but Midoriya suspected that it just because Iida was his personal royal guard and preferred to respond to Midoriya before the court, which could be a double-edged sword someday. But not today. Today, Midoriya was eternally grateful for Iida’s loyalty.

He decided against asking Iida exactly how and who it was the was exchanging the letters between his mother and him. They must’ve been trustworthy though, to have become allies with the both of them. He figured he would meet them eventually.

“Alright…” Iida began. “First, lets go to your office since all of our resources are there.”

“Yessir,” Midoriya saluted. Iida rolled his eyes, and the two walked over to Midoriya’s office.

-

“So either we start off north and circle back to the castle, or go south and then travel back. It depends on you, really. I imagine the southern route would be more nostalgic.” Iida explained, outlining both routes on a map.

“Hmm….” Midoriya thought about it. “Going south, it would be fun to visit more people and places that I know, but going further north and exploring all of that again since it’s been a longer time also sounds like a good idea. What do you know about the north?”

“I think you’re more suited to tell me, since you just got done researching it,” Iida laughed.

He was right. Midoriya started to remember what he had learned. The north had more classic styles of food since they weren’t so close to another kingdom like the south was with Flamuralis, which were bound to be delicious. They also lived near large bodies of water, so their foods must also revolve around that. There was also the discovery of the villain group from all those months ago….

“The north.” Midoriya said.

“Knew it,” Iida called, writing on a document. “Well, I just need to deliver this to the court and have them approve it. It’s currently 2 in the afternoon right now, we’ll probably leave a little before sun down and end up staying at an inn for the night. Oh, but if you feel like you need to catch up or wrap on a few things, we can always leave tomorrow.”

“And waste a day of traveling? I think I’m fine… I can always overthink on the carriage ride” Midoriya responded. “Thank you for your concern though,” he gave Iida a thumbs up.

“Alright,” Iida responded, walking out of the room. 

‘Guess I should start packing’ Midoriya thought, leaving Iida a note saying that he returned to his room before walking back. 

Writing letters to his mother, going on a weeks-long vacation out of the castle, getting to meet Todoroki again at the ball next month, Midoriya’s life seemed a little too perfect at that time.

“One thing at a time,” he told himself encouragingly, looking into his wardrobe and letting his aids help him pick out a few outfits.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Wow Iida... what a bro...  
> Shit, do I love that whole 'thinking of Todoroki makes me think/focus better' thing going on, since these two boys are bound to help each other grow in every little way :')  
> Inko, where ya at?? Somebody come get y'all child.
> 
> Hope this BG chapter wasn't too boring, somehow I struggled with it in the middle so /apologies/ if information seems a little off or rushed. I found myself really looking forward to wanting to write about the trip and the royal ball... and more TDDK interaction... and the million other ideas I have for this fic.
> 
> Thank you for putting up me with ;u;  
> It's the weekend again so next update will be tomorrow... or tonight depending on how excited I am 
> 
> Thats all for now, See you next time, PLUS ULTRA!!!!!


	7. Dealing with the Trip

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Midoriya and Iida finish preparing for their trip, and find out that they will also be accompanied by a familiar friend. Little does Midoriya know about yet another fateful encounter.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Helloooooooo
> 
> BOY, it finally rained in California, and made me think 83928x more things for this fic. So for now, here's the beginning of Midoriya's vacation!

“So the preparations are complete?” 

“Yes, your highness.” 

All Might looked pleased. “Very well, we will see you off at 5 then. For the meantime, could you send Midoriya to see me once he’s done packing? Also, instruct the guards to start loading the carriage.”

Iida bowed. “Yes, your highness.” He repeated. He left the room to inform Midoriya about All Might’s request for a meeting, meanwhile All Might sat in his throne and thought about what he’d say to the young boy. 

-

“Alright, I just want one more suitcase and then I’ll go right over,” Midoriya told Iida, finishing up a new passage into one of his notebooks. He thought it’d be a good idea to brush up on some of the reports he had written from his studies about the North, and further condensed them into a notebook to carry them with him. 

The aids had finished his suitcase on their own, much to Midoriya’s hidden dissatisfaction, and handed it to one of the guards posted by the door. So then they started to dress him for his meeting with All Might. 

Midoriya wondered what the king might tell him, probably some warning or advice about where to eat and rest hopefully. Midoriya couldn’t handle any more information being dumped on him, not until he came back the vacation. He found it odd that he was thinking like this though, since the reason he chose the north was to find out more information about the villains that were found there last time. 

The last coat was placed on his shoulders and tied into place, making him ready to see the king. He thanked the aids per usual, and they bowed. Before he left though, they decided to bid him farewell. 

“Your highness,” they called for him in unison. He turned back to meet them. They rarely spoke, even though they knew that Midoriya would always be kind and respectful towards them. “We want to thank you for having accepted us these past months, it… really made up happy to help someone like you,” the younger one explained. “Please do your best to relax and have fun… we’re counting on you.” The older one added. 

Oh, this made Midoriya feel very warm inside. So his aids were also worrying about him, which was bound to happen because they always accompanied him while he was studying. Now he was more inclined to enjoy his little vacation. 

“Thank you very much, Miss Adeline and Miss Alice. I’ll be counting on you two too, when I return,” he flashed them a smile. 

They smiled in return and then took their leave, Midoriya following after them. He briefly remembered that he also had to say goodbye to Uraraka and Mei, since they haven’t gone to visit him yet. He wondered if they had recovered well from last night. They were probably busy with their own tasks as he and Iida were. 

Midoriya approached the doors to All Mights throne room, and nodded at Ojiro who stood outside as guard. Ojiro acknowledged his presence and then knocked on the door, announcing that the prince had arrived.

“Come in,” All Might spoke from the other side of the door. Promptly Ojiro opened them and Midoriya walked in swiftly, quietly thanking the guard.

“Your highness,” Midoriya greeted, kneeling down on one knee. 

“Welcome, young Midoriya. How have you been doing since last night?” All Might asked. 

Midoriya thought back to the conversation they had after having found out the dilemma between the king and prince from Flamuralis. Midoriya briefly winced once he remembered that fact, and how upset he was after he found out, but thinking about Todoroki’s little ‘Don’t worry’ speech comforted him.

Also, he couldn’t help but think that that seemed like such a long time ago… not even a full 24 hours had happened since then. If it wasn’t for the strong feelings that kept resurfacing from that night and what happened afterwards, Midoriya could’ve sworn that at least a week had passed since then.

“To be truthful, your highness, my feelings are still a mess, and I worry about many things, but I’ve been starting to feel strength from all those who love and support me. I feel… stronger in a way, knowing that people depend on me… even when it comes to relaxing,” Midoriya smiled to himself, remembering what the aids had told him. “I’ve only been sixteen for a day, so much has been taught and revealed to me already. I’m… excited to see what’s in store for me.” 

He was surprised he had been able to reveal all of that, some of those thoughts not having made sense in his head until he spoke them aloud. All Might probably didn’t know, but just his presence and listening really helped Midoriya gather and explain his thoughts. It was amazing, really, Midoriya hoped that he’d too have this unspoken effect with others too.

“I’m glad to hear that. It seems that you are learning about your influence on others, and theirs on you. It’s important…” All Might continued speaking, whilst getting up from his chair to pace around, “to understand how any actions can either directly or indirectly affect people. It will help guide your decisions, for the best.” 

What he was saying made complete sense. “I see…” Midoriya responded. “I appreciate what you are teaching me, your highness.”

“Good.” All Might simply said. “So king Endeavor and prince Todoroki left this morning.” All Might began to say, chuckling a little before he finished his sentence, “I’m surprised Todoroki had you believe he was a scholar.”

Midoriya blushed. “There was so much on my mind, I was vulnerable to any lie.” He confessed. Todoroki had really made a fool of him, but he didn’t mind. 

“And…? What did you think of him? I believe you’re in a better state now to review your experiences with him.”

Oh, where would Midoriya even begin. Maybe he could start off with the dream about Todoroki… or about how much he seemed to be attracted to him… or the million other thoughts in his head that revolved around Todoroki.

“He was really good at reading my emotions,” Midoriya opted to reveal, which wasn’t a lie. Todoroki would randomly bring up thoughts that Midoriya hadn’t revealed, and correctly guessed them. “Honestly, he also seemed smarter than me, in that aspect. He would rather observe than speak for the most part, which is something I have yet to work on.” 

“I see…” All Might trailed off. “That’s true, but for the most part you two seemed pretty similar. Not bad, since you’ve only been a prince for two and a half years, meanwhile Todoroki had a little head start.”

That’s good to hear. 

“He’s quite rebellious too, except he shows it in a much more… prominent way than you. Even though it usually results in a terrible consequence, I’m glad he doesn’t seem to take up the same role as Endeavor. He’s quite strong-willed… I’m glad you were able to meet him before the ball. You’ll have one less royal to worry about.”

“...That’s true,” Midoriya responded. “Honestly though, I don’t plan to worry about that ball until I return,” he sighed. 

“Oh, I’m sorry,” All Might apologized. He remembered about Midoriya's full plate of worries and decided to change the topic. “So you opted for the northern route? You’ll have quite the amount of fun over there,” 

“Hopefully. I’m rather excited to try their food, mostly.”

“Ah, so you’ve read about their so called ‘seafood’. You realize we have those options available here as well, don’t you?”

Their kitchen was rather impressive, it belonged to the castle after all. Only the finest of the finest chefs were chosen to work there, and the freshest ingredients were brought from all over the kingdom to suit the royals tastes. 

“Well… I have a thing for the food outside of the castle, not that I don’t appreciate our kitchen here, but well, I’m used to the outside. The people… their wishes, desire and hard work go into the food and give it a new taste… I can’t really explain it I guess.” 

“Well, I expect you’ll be able to sort that explanation out in your notebooks. I look forward to reading them.” 

“Oh, of course your highness,” Midoriya responded. He did plan to fill out a few new ones. 

“Well, I won’t keep you for long. I understand you still have to see Uraraka and Mei. Uraraka… she really worried for you that night. We just left her alone, after all. I suggest you see her first.”

Ah, that’s right. In Midoriya’s angst, he and All Might rushes over to his room, totally having forgotten Uraraka. 

“Understood, your highness. With your blessing later, my journey will begin.” Midoriya bowed.

“Yes, see you until then. You are dismissed.”

“Yes, your highness.”

All Might turned to walk back to his throne and took a seat, while Midoriya walked out and headed towards Uraraka’s quarters. 

-

Midoriya knocked on Uraraka’s door thrice before finally getting a response from within the room. 

“Who is it?” Asked Uraraka.

“Uraraka, it’s me, Midori-“

The door was flung open before he could finish, and a distressed expression on Uraraka’s face greeted them. Before he could process anything, she rushed him into the room, closing the door once again behind him.

“Sorry about that,” she apologized, smoothing out the fabric where she had grabbed him. “I just… there's something going on.” she explained.

Well, he could have seen that obviously even if she hadn’t mentioned it. It looked like she had been crying for awhile, her eyes swollen and pink. 

Midoriya looked at her concerned, and immediately hugged her. “What’s going on, Uraraka? I haven’t seen you since… last night,” he told her. 

“Ah, it’s nothing too bad… I think… I got a letter from my parents and I just… I miss them so much.”

So Uraraka has also received a letter? As far as Midoriya knew, she had been communicating regularly with her parents. A letter shouldn’t have been capable of breaking her down like this.

“Well, are they okay? Did they warn you about anything?” Midoriya asked, concerned. He wasn’t terribly suspicious about the coincidence of him and her receiving letters, but it wasn’t bad to be careful. 

“Oh yes yes, don’t worry your highness. They just… I have a sister… now…”

“A… sister? And… you’re barely finding out now?” 

“Yes,” Uraraka began to wipe off a tear that began to fall down her cheek. “Supposedly they didn’t tell me because they didn’t want to bother me, but they told me now anyways and the damage is done. I feel so bad for not being there… I didn’t see the birth of my sister. Me, Midoriya, the one who provides mostly everything for them. How do you think that makes me feel?”

Midoriya frowned. Uraraka was right, why would her parents have hidden something so important from her? He didn’t know much about her family because she wasn’t always eager to disclose information, apparently they had suffered a rough past before Uraraka began to live in the castle, but it still seemed rather cold to have left her in the dark.

“Well… since they told you, maybe they want you to visit them. Have you told anyone? I’m sure the king would give you permission. You’ve worked hard for us, after all.” Midoriya offered. 

“True…” said Uraraka. “To be honest, I was freaking out until you came here to see me, so thank you.”

Midoriya smiled. The wish he had created during his meeting with All Might had already come true. 

“Oh, speaking of traveling, you’re leaving soon too, right? I’m sorry I haven’t gone to visit you… after the party ended last night… I just…”

“Ah, don’t worry about that Uraraka. Everything’s fine now.”

Uraraka eyed him curiously. “That’s good to hear… which reminds me… you said some rather bold things last night… and you were so concerned before but now you seem relaxed and comforted… I wonder what happened between you two…”

Midoriya furiously blushed. A personal attack out of nowhere?! Uncalled for!! 

“U-Uraraka!” He exclaimed, flustered. His hands immediately flew to his face, unaware that he was only making himself look even more suspicious. And Uraraka was loving it. 

“Your secret is safe with me, Dekuuuuu~” she sang, getting behind him and rubbing his shoulders. “I’m dying to know how my prince is feeling, maybe a story will cheer me up too,” she pouted. Midoriya always cracked like this.

And he did. He sighed. “Alright.”

They moved across the room to sit on a couch. Uraraka sat with her legs crossed, meanwhile Midoriya completely slouched and extended his limbs in all directions, defeated. He shouldn’t be embarrassed to share something like this with Uraraka, he had always shared anything and everything about his life as he does with Iida, but his heart was pumping fast for some odd reason. 

“Well, after you left, we stepped out into the balcony to cool down, and…”

Midoriya explained the gist of their conversation, explaining how Todoroki praised their kingdom and mentioned a few details about Flamuralis and it’s people. He also mentioned how good it felt to just converse with Todoroki, and how they had promised to meet again. 

“He’s also scary good at guessing someone’s emotions. He almost always knew what I was thinking, it was amazing.”

When he finished saying this, Uraraka began to laugh. Quietly at first, but then gradually getting louder and louder. 

“Midoriya!” She exclaimed, grabbing onto his coat and shaking him. “Anyone can read you like that! You’re like an open book!” She exclaimed, continuing to laugh.

Midoriya looked annoyed. “Look, I know that, but it was different, he like said my thoughts, it was weird. I felt like I couldn’t hide anything from him, so it was hard to speak to him dishonestly…”

“Midoriya…” she said seriously. He gave her a questioning look. “You didn’t reveal that you were a prince righ-”

“No, no. Of course not.” he quickly said. “Rather, honestly, it should’ve hit me right then and there that he was the prince. Can’t really blame me though, since Iida also didn’t know he was. Still…” he trailed off.

Uraraka’s laugh slowly subsided, and her aura got serious again. She began to look distressed. 

“It’s… my fault that he got found out. That we got found out. When I was looking for the guards to get Iida… I was confronted… apparently someone saw us and I… I couldn’t lie to a king… I’m so sorry, Midoriya. If it wasn’t for me, maybe that horrible thing wouldn’t have happened to the prince…”

Some tears had began to form on the corners of her eyes again. Midoriya noticed and sat up attentively, placing a hand on her lap. “Look Uraraka, the blame is on all of us equally. I too….” he clenched his free hand into a fist, but promptly let it go again, “Prince Todoroki told me not to worry, rather he actually ordered me to not worry, so don’t go on bothering yourself for something unnecessary.” Midoriya comforted her. 

“You… met with him afterwards?”

Ah, Midoriya didn’t plan on letting her know, but the cat was out of the bag.

“Yes… after I passed out in my room, I woke up early this morning to retrieve medicine and found myself in the balcony of that room again…”

He continued to explain the second part of their conversation, how he jumped down to Todoroki’s balcony. He told her about how Todoroki proclaimed that he wasn’t weak enough to want pity from Midoriya or anyone. He also mentioned that they left the castle that morning to give the same news they had for All Might to the Grasslands kingdom. 

“I see…” Uraraka said, sniffling quietly. “Well, I’m glad he’s okay. As you had said earlier that night,’it would’ve been bad to see anything happen to his face’” she said in a bad impression of a tipsy Midoriya. 

“I-I didn’t say it like that!” Midoriya exclaimed. “Geez, you’re worse than Iida in the teasing department. Maybe we should have you become an interrogator instead,” he scoffed. 

“Aww, come on your highness. Seeing you blushing and flustered greatly elevated my mood. I really appreciate it.” She blew a kiss at him.

Reluctantly, he ‘grabbed’ it and put it on his forehead. She smiled. “Oh, so do you really think All Might would let me visit my parents? Where are you going after all and what time do you leave?”

“I’m sure he would, since I’ll be gone you won’t have as much work to do for me. We decided to go north, I think your parents are somewhere northwest correct? We leave at five… which is in two hours.” He explained. “If you want, we can go right now and ask. The more on the trip, the merrier.”

“I’d love that, thank you, your highness. Let me get ready,” she stood up and walked over to her wardrobe. 

“...I’ll be outside.” Midoriya excused himself, exiting the room. 

So… Uraraka has a sister now. Midoriya wondered if it had a quirk like her, and if so, what it was. They wouldn’t be able to tell until the child was about four or five anyways. But if she does end up having a quirk, then she’ll undeniably end up living at the castle like Uraraka, which saddened Midoriya a little. 

In other kingdoms, quirks had only belonged to royalty. Strong quirks especially were only bestowed on pure-royalty, the family who ruled over the kingdom. But Yuuei was different, as it was in many other aspects as well. Due to its history with mass-immigration caused by the growing popularity of the king All Might, families with small, unimportant quirks began to show up and stay in Yuuei. As a result, the court decided to shelter those with them, and have them work in the castle to sort of ‘uphold’ the royalty status of quirks. Of course, other kingdoms envied this, but none actively complained about it. Yuuei was free to do what it wanted within their own kingdom. 

Eventually those ‘small’ quirks began to enhance with each new generation, which resulted in strong quirks belonging to those non-royal families. The greatest examples were Uraraka and Iida. Uraraka has the ability to remove the gravitational pull on objects that she touched, and eventually trained enough to be able to use her quirk on something even if she hadn’t touched it. Iida had engine-like calves, which gave him a great boost in running, speed, and stamina. 

It was due to those quirks and strong-willed hearts that made the Midoriya’s closest and greatest companions. Although Mei was pretty high up there as well, even without a quirk.

‘Ah, that's right,’ Midoriya thought. He had to go see Mei as well. “Uraraka,” he knocked.

“Yeah?”

“How much longer are you gonna take?”

“...Are you rushing me?”

Oh, Midoriya hadn't noticed that he was sounding rude, which was no problem to a prince, but our prince was an exception.

“Sorry, it’s just that I remembered I have to see Mei as well.” he explained.

“Mm, go visit her and I’ll be ready when you come back.” she told him.

“Okay, be right back.” 

And with that, he was on his way to the blacksmith shop.

-

“Good to see you, your highness!” she greeted, removing her goggles and sliding them up to her forehead. She enthusiastically walked over to him and gave him a fist bump. “How are ya feeling? Still got some alcohol in your system?” she snickered.

“You would know, you were the first one to fall asleep,” he laughed.

“Heyy now, it took a lot of energy to save you from that confession Iida suddenly gave. Seriously, between you and him, I don’t know who to crown as ‘the worst drunkard’” she poked at him.

“I didn’t get nearly as bad as him. I had… a lot of things on my mind.” Midoriya explained, smoothing out his coat.

“Right… I can probably guess what a few of them were…” she winked at him. 

Was he speaking to Mei right now? Or some sort of Uraraka clone?

He groaned. “Seriously, what is the deal with all of you teasing me,” Midoriya sighed, walking over to examine some of the pieces she seemed to be working on.

“It’s your fault for being so vulnerable, your highness. This is a side of you we haven’t seen in a while. We had all agreed that you just stopped finding people attractive and that you’d be a single king forever, like our current one.”

“Mei, you are being rather bold right now,” he warned. Mei got the message, but still pushed through, for the princes sake, she thought. 

“Just sayin’” she responded. “He seemed nice. Wonder if he’s coming to the ball.”  
She hadn’t brought up the incident that occured after the party, or the fact that he was a prince. She was unconscious while it happened, after all. Midoriya thought it best to explain it to her another time. 

“He is. And when he returns, not one word about your weird fantasies, alright?”

Mei laughed and nodded. “Yes yes, your highness. So you’re really leaving today huh?” she asked, also admiring her work alongside Midoriya.

“Yup,” he responded. “I’ll be able to make use of the new sword you made for me. I look forward to bringing it with me.” he smiled. It truly was one of the most beautiful things he had seen in his life, along with two-colored eyes that always seemed to be popping into his mind. He quietly shook his head.

“I hope you won't be forced to use it.” she responded calmly. 

“... Me too,” Midoriya breathed. Somehow, he had a feeling he would though.

They continued to converse about various things again, before Midoriya had noticed half an hour had passed by. So he excused himself and she bid him farewell.

\- 

“You took awhile,” Uraraka said seriously, sipping some of her tea. 

“Sorry. I couldn't tell so much time had passed by. I only intended to pop in and out.” he explained honestly.

“Sure sure, you overly-friendly prince.” She finished her tea and got up, and they both exited the room. 

During their walk there, Midoriya admired her dress. “You look really nice in that,” he complimented. The truth was, Uraraka looked nice in everything. Her body really made any article of clothing stand out, which is why Midoriya had such a hard time talking and getting along with her at first. She would shine far too bright for him, but he found himself getting over it gradually. Now, he was glad he could simply offer compliments and appreciate her as a good friend.

“Thank you, your highness. It was a gift from Prince Todoroki.”

Midoriya stopped dead in his tracks, choking on his own spit. What??

Uraraka burst out laughing, bending over and holding her stomach, much like she did during the celebration last night. “OH MY GOD!” she exclaimed, gasping for air.

Midoriya understood what she had done, and grew irritated. “I refuse to bring you along on my trip.” he said coldly, beginning to walk again. He wasn’t really serious though, and Uraraka knew it.

“Come on, you gotta admit it’s funny how just saying his name gets a reaction from you,” she said between laughs. 

Silently, Midoriya wondered if that's how things would remain for awhile.

-

The meeting with All Might regarding Uraraka asking for permission to travel with Midoriya was short. The king agreed, although he warned that Uraraka wouldn't have a female partner to accompany her in at the inns. It was nice that All Might worried about this, but Uraraka had already planned on sleeping in the same room as Iida and Midoriya. They were practically siblings anyways. She would only get lonely in the baths, which wasn’t really a problem in the first place.

So after that was arranged, they were dismissed and Uraraka excused herself to start packing. With an hour and a half left until they were to depart, Midoriya went to the kitchen to ask for a few on-the-road snacks, and found himself sitting on a tree in the courtyard, excited and nervous about the trip.

-

“Your highness, it’s time to load ourselves onto the carriage,” Iida came and informed him. The hour had passed by much faster than Midoriya had anticipated, though he didn’t mind in the slightest. He was just absentmindedly thinking about his quirk, which he hadn’t been able to develop in quite some time. He figured he would ask Iida to help him practice some time during the trip. 

“Awesome,” Midoriya responded, jumping off of the tree and joining Iida in walking to the carriage outside of the gate. 

“Have you taken care of everything you needed to do?” Iida asked Midoriya. 

“Yeah,” Midoriya responded. He didn’t really have much to do after meeting All Might with Uraraka, which is why he was able to think about his quirk earlier. Still, he was wandering through his thoughts to see if he had anything else to do…

“It’s almost timeeee,” Uraraka dang, running over to them and twirling. “Are you surprised to see me, Iida?!?” She asked, grinning.

“Actually no, I was informed that you were coming along by one of my guards,” Iida explained, grinning back. Uraraka had thought she was finally one step above him, but she wasn’t. 

She slipped into a defeated look. 

“Truthfully, I’m so excited!” Midoriya exclaimed, marching forward with a grand ol’ smile. His excitement was finally catching up with him, it’s been a long six months after all. Time to put everything that’s not about this trip behind him, so he could have fun and relax like his friends want him too. 

“So, what are the first plans?” He asked Iida. 

“Hmm, Well first we have to dismiss ourselves and be seen off my All Might, then we I’ll tell you in the carriage. Okay?”

“Sure, sounds good,” Midoriya agreed. A few guards were finishing putting their luggage onto the cart, and soon everyone who was going was arranged into a line while they waited for All Might’s arrival.

The king arrived promptly and spoke a few wise words, “Today marks a day in which the future prince of Yuuei, Izuku Midoriya, has exemplified his knowledge and skill enough to have earned a week-long trip outside of the castle. I pray you all learn plenty from your expedition, but also that you relax your minds and prepare to continue offering your bests to the kingdom, as it does for you in return. Enjoy yourselves. With that, I see you off.”

“Thank you, your highness,” everyone responded, kneeling on one knee.

With that, All Might raised an arm and they all stood back up, returning to the carriages and starting to load themselves up on each respective carriage.

Uraraka and Iida climbed into theirs first, and before Midoriya followed them on board, he glanced at All Might. 

All Might gave him a dashing smile and a thumbs up, which made Midoriya nod with determination. 

Soon he was sitting next to Iida and across from Uraraka, and the three friends began to converse about the possibilities of their travels while the carriage began to move.

-

“So, this is the first stop.” Iida explained, prompting Uraraka and Midoriya to look outside the carriage windows. They stopped somewhere on the outside of a village, seeing only a few bit of houses. 

“Somehow, this feels like an execution…” Uraraka joked, noting how empty their surroundings were. Midoriya laughed a little.

“Well, we’re not stopping in the village for a reason. We have to make sure no one is following us, and prevent any potential robbers from seeing our loaded carriage. But from here, the guards will station somewhere while us three go and explore.”

“Ah, that makes sense,” Midoriya noted. He’d doubt that there were any robbers in a village so close to the castle though, but it was good to take precaution. 

“Glad you understand, ‘Deku’, now let’s warm up our legs.” Iida instructed, getting out of the carriage while a guard held the door open. 

Midoriya and Uraraka followed after him. They all did their preferred stretches, meanwhile Midoriya striked up a conversation with one of the guards.

“Your name, trusted one?” He asked, stretching his shoulder by pulling it to the right with his left hand.

“Mike, your highness,” he answered. 

“Nice to meet you Mike. Are you excited about a trip like this?” 

“The pleasure is mine, your highness. I am, I actually haven’t been able to travel from the castle in a while, and I was starting to miss views like these.”

Midoriya nodded. “I see…”

“Oh, but that does not mean I am not suited to travel with you all and protect you in these different environments. I grew up around here, so I hope to be of best use to you with what I remember.”

Midoriya hadn’t underestimated Mike in the slightest, but the guard still decided to reinforce his role in their trip. It was good that they had such trustworthy people in charge of their stuff.

“Deku,” Iida called, walking over to them. “Are you ready?”

“Ah, let me just get my sword,” Midoriya responded. With that, he went over to their main carriage and pulled the sword out, protected in its cover. He tied the belt attached to it around his hips and positioned the sword to hang down his left leg. “Alright, now I’m ready,” he announced, walking around a little to make sure the belt was well fastened.

“Awesome!” exclaimed Uraraka. “Let’s start!!”

They had walked for a short time, about ten minutes, before they started to see commotion amongst the village. There were more houses present now, and had crossed paths with many people doing their various jobs and tasks.

“Wonder what we’re going to eat,” Uraraka wondered out loud, placing a hand on her stomach.

They had been traveling in the carriage for about two hours. Midoriya had shared the snacks he got from the kitchen with them, but it appears that Uraraka hadn’t eaten that entire day due to the trouble she was facing in her room.

Iida noted this. “It’s a bit too early for dinner, but let’s see if they have anything worthwhile in their shops.

“Yes!!” Uraraka exclaimed, looking rather excited.

Midoriya started to realize how happy he was for bringing Uraraka along on the trip. Iida was plenty of fun to be with, sometimes, but Uraraka was always exclaiming her thoughts and showing off her excitement, which in return excited others like Midoriya.

“Sorry folks, but I can’t help but have heard you’re all looking for food,” a stranger said, approaching them.

Midoriya and Uraraka thought nothing of them, but Iida changed his stance. 

“No need for that, boy.” The stranger remarked, focusing his attention on Uraraka. “Up ahead is a large inn, and to the right a few streets away is a great spot with bowls of soup that’ll fill you up nicely before you continue on your journey. I recommend that place, especially since my beloved works there. Nicest gal in the city.” The stranger smiled.

“I see…” Uraraka responded. “Thank you for the suggestion! Mr….” 

“Darren.”

“Mr. Darren,” Midoriya repeated. “Thank you for your suggestion.”

Darren smiled and nodded. “Have fun here with us in this village. We’re known for the structure of our houses. We get a lot of influence from the castle since it’s so close. Enjoy yourselves!” With that, Darren continued carrying his bag of appearing flower, the group continued on forward to visit that soup shop.

The shop was there as promised, and they were greeted warmly once they walked in.

Uraraka wasted no time in asking for their best soup, meanwhile Iida and Midoriya opted to look at a menu first. 

So that’s where the trio spent the next hour, conversing lightly while they slowly ate their bowls of soup. There was no rush for… anything. So it all felt very refreshing. 

“Where are we gonna meet the others?” Midoriya asked, finishing up his soup. He placed the empty bowl at the edge of the table, and it was promptly taken away by a waitress that had just passed by. 

“At the opposite end of where we left them. Our main goal is to walk through the villages so you get to see as much as possible.” Iida explained, also finishing his bowl and placing it at the edge. “Speaking of which, didn’t you pass by here, Deku? The last time you had snuck out?”

Uraraka snickered a little. Midoriya just sheepishly patted his head. “Not through this village, no. I circled around it and headed more east, I think. Honestly, I can barely remember.” He explained.

“I see…” Iida trailed off. “Well, lets keep going then. It’s now 8:30,” he said, looking at his pocket watch,” we need to get to the next village and Inn by 11, so let’s get going.”

Midoriya and Uraraka nodded, flagging down a waitress so they could thank her for the meal and pay.

“Come on by anytime you’d like!” She told them before they left.

The walk to the other edge of the village was brief, getting there in about thirty minutes. On their way, Midoriya had noted the architecture of their houses, as Darren had pointed out. He did notice that most of them had very geometrical shapes, looking more like gates, specifically like the one that surrounded the castle. If a building wasn’t four walls, it’d have expansions with an addition three walls in the back or on the corners. It was quite interesting, Midoriya hadn’t really ever paid attention to those details whenever he had visited villages before. Already, he envisioned himself filling out a quarter of his notebook.   
“Welcome back,” Mike greeted them warmly. 

The three also returned the greeting, and started to stretch before they would get on the carriage and proceed to the next village. 

The trip was about an hour and thirty minutes long, so they arrived at about 10:30, much to Iida’s liking. This time, their carriage proceeded to travel into the village, probably because Iida didn’t want to risk walking in an unknown place this late into the night. Despite his precautions though, Midoriya noticed that a lot of people were still walking around. The streets were brightly lit, adorned by many rows of candles and lights. 

“I’m surprised, too,.” Iida suddenly spoke, probably having figured out what Midoriya was thinking.

“Yeah,” Midoriya responded. “It’s nice to see everyone out so late.”

“Oh Deku,” Uraraka began to speak, “These people are right up your alley, you never sleep either.”

He laughed. “I suppose you’re right.”

It was true, Midoriya often stayed up late, and then ended up waking up real early. He never felt fatigue from it though, his body relied and functioned properly with just four or five hours of sleep. Whether it was a blessing or a curse, Midoriya still did not know. He did enjoy waking up before it became dawn, though.

“So, we’re going to leave the carriage at the Inn since we’re familiar with it. We’re almost there.” Iida explained, looking at his folder. And he was right, a few minutes later, the carriage came to a stop and one of the guards announced that they had arrived.

The Inn was gorgeous, and very large. It was bigger than the one they had crossed back in the previous village, and looked much brighter up. They could hear some soft music leak from it’s front doors.

“Ooh, wonder if they have a band playing right now,” Uraraka said, dismounting her luggage from the carriage.

A guard moved to help Midoriya carry his, but Midoriya assured him that it’d be better if he did it himself. “I’m one of you now,” he said, winking at the guard. “Now, lead us, great Iida,” he bellowed loudly. 

Iida smiled and began to walk them into the Inn. Midoriya seemed like he was finally starting to loosen up, thought it might just be because it was almost time for them to go to sleep.

-

“Oh, I don't want to sleep yet,” Uraraka told the two once they had settled into their room. “I’m still hungry from earlier, the soup was good but I’m really craving sometime large… and meaty-y.” she explained.

“Do they even cook this late?” Midoriya asked, laying out his nightclothes on his bed. 

“Do you not smell all these aromas in the air?” she asked him in return, moving her hands to rush some air into her face and taking in deep breaths of it.

Midoriya hadn’t noticed because he was fairly intent on bathing and sleeping immediately, but it did smell rather good. “I hadn’t before, but now I do.”

Uraraka nodded. “That's probably where the music is coming from too, we didn’t get to see their main hall.”

Midoriya thought for a second. “Well…. I’m going to take a bath and then come back to sleep.” Midoriya explained. “You can’t go alone Uraraka.”

“I know. That's why Iida will come with me. I know you’re hungry too,” she said, walking over to poke Iida’s stomach.

“Normally I’d refuse to leave Midoriya alone, but I am hungry too,” he said boldy, adjusting his glasses.

“Yeah, that's fine.” Midoriya yawned. “I doubt anyone would try to kill me while I’m naked. I also refuse to die naked.”

Uraraka laughed. “I’m sure a guard will be lurking near you somewhere.”

Midoriya nodded, agreeing with her “Well, I won’t keep you guys from eating. I’ll see you when you get back to the room.”

Uraraka and Iida nodded as well, bowing to him, and then exited the room. Midoriya took his night clothes, along with a towel, and made his way to the baths.

-

Midoriya wasn’t really used to big public baths like the one at this Inn. There were some in the castle, or course, and some in the Inns that he used to stay at during his expeditions, but never were they as full as this one.

So the bath room was structured like this: Once you entered the room, to the right and left there were vast areas where one would sit on a stool under some running water. This is where you would take care of things such as scrubbing your body and hair clean with soap. You’d rinse off under the water, and then relax in the large pool of water that sat at the end of the room. The water was always natural and spring-like, offering relaxing and healing properties to whomever rested in it.

Anyways, he only took one glance at the main bath to see how almost every edge had ten or more people on it, and then downcasted his eyes as he walked over to the scrub area to his left. Normally he wouldn’t really feel embarrassed or ashamed, but he was so used to his own private bath already. He secretly wished Iida was there with him. 

Still, he pulled through and managed to scrub himself clean, and began to rinse himself. It was now that he started to realize how tired he truly was, and the thought of relaxing in the bath water made him really look forward to it.

When he was done rinsing, he wrapped the towel around his waist again and began to walk towards it, eyes still downcast. For the time being, he decided to keep his eyes solely focused on his own feet as he wandered over to an empty spot and began to climb in, completely unaware of anyone that was near him. 

Oh, the first dip he made into the water with his foot already felt heavenly, throwing some satisfying chills up his back. He proceeded to dip a whole leg in first, letting his shins and thighs get used to the hot temperature, and then removed his towel to fold it and lay it near the edge besides him. Soon his other leg joined the first into the water, making his whole body feel warm already. But nothing had prepared him for what he would feel when he finally dipped his whole body in though. Once the water immediately covered his back, his muscles twitched with pleasure before they relaxed, allowing Midoriya to arch his back a stretch a little before getting into a comfortable pose. He sat his bottom on the edge beneath the water and let his head rest on top of his towel. 

He couldn’t help but let out a quiet, quiet satisfying moan. He really was that tired. 

He had managed to complete the whole process with his eyes closed, which is why he was able to react so attentively to the bath water with his body. Once he was a few minutes into relaxing, he was preparing to open his eyes and take in the scenery, no matter how many people were around him.

So he did, and realized that there weren’t as many people present as he initially thought. He must’ve taken a long time scrubbing.

First he looked to his left, feeling satisfied at the low amount of people there, but before turning his head to to also see how many people were there, he heard a familiar voice to his right. 

“Deku…?” It asked quietly. 

Oh, he knew exactly who this voice belonged to.

His head snapped to the right, and his eyes met with those two-colored eyes that had been haunting his thoughts prominently for the last 24 hours.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> THEY'VE MET IN A BATH WOW didnt see THAT coming.  
> Seriously though hmmm what will they talk about next time... is it even allowed to speak at public baths??
> 
> I love the Uraraka&Iida&Midoriya trio so much, wonder what they'll do next   
> (i speak in question because ideas come to me as I write. I have a general outline that I follow, but really most of the scenes surprise me as much as they surprise you)
> 
> For now, I give up on trying to foreshadow what happens in the next chapter because the notes thus far have been deceiving, so SEE YOU NEXT TIME! PLUS ULTTRRAAA


	8. Observations

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Midoriya and company plus Todoroki spend a night at the inn, and decide where to travel for the next day.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Welcome back everyone!  
> Thank you to those who bookmarked, I love youuuuu and I hope you stay along for the rest of the journey! <3
> 
> So here it is, after a week of writing and erasing and writing again, enjoy some more quality time between our (mei's voice) babies!!

The shock of it all was too much to bear, so Midoriya resorted to closing his eyes in an attempt to get away from the stimulus that was causing him stress at the moment, which was Todoroki.

Not that Midoriya didn’t particularly like Todoroki, or minded keeping the secret of him being a prince and not some castle scholar, but rather Midoriya knew that the more time they spent together, the more Midoriya would....

He expected Todoroki to throw more questions at him after he had closed his eyes, but much to his surprise, he didn’t hear another word from Todoroki. So his heart was eventually able to recover, and after a few seconds of distracting himself with random thoughts, he faced Todoroki once again with open eyes.

“I don’t know what that was, but I hope you feel better,” Todoroki greeted him, now facing the bath instead of looking at Midoriya.

“Yeah… thanks… I just... thought my mind was playing tricks with me,” Midoriya responded, facing the bath as well. Once his heart stopped racing, the real question came to mind. What the heck was Todoroki doing there?

“Why would your mind be playing tricks about me?” Todoroki asked curiously.

Instead of properly responding ‘because you’ve been on my mind ever since I met you, which wasn’t that long ago but somehow I feel like it’s been forever’, Midoriya opted to deal with this situation in a more professional manner. “Since you left this morning, I thought you all had traveled further than this, not to mention this Inn is more North than West.”

Todoroki sighed. “You’re right. The thing is, we had traveled for a long time prior to arriving, so traveling again so soon didn’t sound appealing, not to me at least. The horses needed a break too.”

Midoriya had begun to suspect that Todoroki was sounding rebellious, which would mean that the only reason he’s here, alone, is because…

“No,” Todoroki began to explain, “I didn’t run away or sneak out this time. My old man is here too, practicing that awful quirk of his. It’s thanks to my expertise in taunting and blackmail that I was able to avoid joining him. So I just came to relax here in the baths.”

Ah… so the dreaded King was here as well. “I see…” Midoriya trailed off. Todoroki’s excuse was valid, since the trip from Flamuralis to Yuuei must have taken three or four days, and then the trip from Yuuei to the Grasslands is another four or five because of the rough terrain. 

Anyhow, Midoriya let go his suspicions and sat there in silence until he’d think of another topic to bring up with Todoroki. Todoroki didn’t seem to mind the absence of a conversation, since he had just laid his head back against the edge and closed his eyes. 

Seeing Todoroki is such a lax and peaceful state really fired up Midoriya’s head… Up until then, Midoriya had thought his mental fortitude was strong enough to avoid any… inappropriate… thoughts about they very naked and handsome prince sitting next to time, but he simply didn’t. The silence was too inviting, so he sat as still as the stone that the bath was made out of, and proceeded to bring up some topic that bounced into his head while he vowed to not let his eyes wander over any section of Todoroki.

“Did someone tell you about this specific Inn?”

Todoroki thought for a second. “Yes, actually. We passed a couple of people traveling on horses and I asked for a recommendation, to which they gave us this place. I was keen to explore Yuuei a bit more anyways. After our conversations, I found myself feeling very curious, too much to tame by reading novels and reports. I thought maybe I’d even find someone similar to you.”

Ah, what? “Similar to me?” Midoriya repeated, almost having compromised his vow to not look at Todoroki. He opted to continue starring on forward, since luckily, no one was resting there.

“I mentioned it before, didn’t I?” Todoroki began to explain. “There's something… peculiar about you. It’s nothing bad, it just affects me in a strange way, makes me want to keep being in your company,” he brought out a hand from under the water and stared at it, eventually clenching it and continuing his thoughts, “Somehow I feel like I should be competing with you… or working with you… something like that.”

Midoriya was involuntarily frozen. Was Todoroki saying that he… wanted to be with him? But in what way? The way he explained it revealed a lot, but also seemingly revealed nothing. The explanation was so vague, and his tone didn’t help distinguish anything at all.

“Uh… compete… with me? You? A prince? With me?” Midoriya fumbled to say. The questions in his head were forming to quickly for him to shut them out and figure things out on his own.

Todoroki let out a sly laugh, which kind of annoyed Midoriya. A vague confession accompanied by a laugh? What exactly was going through Todoroki’s head?

“You sound frightened…,” Todoroki replied. “It’s nothing to worry about. I don’t think too much of it, though our meetings have been so frequent, some of this must be due to fate.”

Fate… the distant dream that Midoriya had experienced months prior must've also been due to that. For the time being, he didn’t really question why he suddenly met Todoroki in his castle, or how convenient the other two times they had seen each other were. Rather, he just accepted them and faced them head on, a noble trait that he had.

While he was thinking, a loud grunt was heard from a man that was bathing to their left, reminding them that they were in a bath and that the only important thing there wasn’t the very naked Todoroki, but rather the silence that’s supposed to be kept to respect others that were also relaxing there.

So the two boys looked at each other and nodded, mutually dropping their conversation to also relax in the silence.

Slowly the men in the bath started to leave, one by one, until eventually there there was only Todoroki, Midoriya, and two others left. It was pretty late, about 11:30 now, but Midoriya didn’t plan to leave anytime soon. The lovely bath water had just started to relax his palms and feet. Todoroki didn’t seem to budge either.

After a few more minutes, the last two men left. Now the bath water was completely still, with only Todoroki and Midoriya remaining in it. 

So Midoriya decided to start talk first. “Todoro-” he began, but was cut off.

“Shoto.” Todoroki corrected him.

“Ah… Shoto,” Midoriya continued awkwardly, “What is it that you do… as a prince?” he asked boldly. He truly was curious, since Midoriya’s main tasks consisted of observing the kingdom and write reports about it, constantly studying it and another kingdoms now as well. He wondered if Todoroki did the same. 

“Mm… I’m not… sure I can reveal that.” Todoroki responded. 

Midoriya hadn’t expected this result, he thought that they were… sort of establishing an equal friendship where they could discuss things like this. But maybe he had gotten ahead of himself, he had forgotten that there were still lines that could be crossed. 

“Ah, I just remembered your kingdom doesn’t have an heir or prince that you can observe,” Todoroki said. “Well, it’s basically like being a scholar, like you. Except I get annoyingly pampered.”

Well, that sounded underwhelming. “You make it sound so simple,” Midoriya responded. 

Todoroki thought for a second. “It is, really. There’s also quirk training too I guess, but I dislike talking about it, and even thinking about it.”

“...I see.” Oh, Todoroki mentioning his quirk surprised Midoriya. He had forgotten that Todoroki must’ve possessed a quirk. Now his curiosity grew even more, but Todoroki made it clear that he probably didn’t want to talk about it.

“I guess we are competing in that sense then… in a scholarly way.” Midoriya resorted to saying. “What you mentioned earlier, about… how you feel in my company… I feel like that too. For the time being, would you like to hear some facts about Yuuei?” He hoped that came out as innocent as he thought it sounded in his head.

Todoroki closed his eyes and nodded. “I’d like that, Deku.”

Ah, hearing Todoroki say his name caught him off guard a little, it sounded so… tender. But Midoriya couldn’t think about that, right now he had something that could keep him distracted now. At least until he felt fatigued enough to forget about how badly he wanted to continue being with Todoroki. HIs mysterious aura was strangely inviting, and even though the cold intimidation that Midoriya felt from him when they first met still lingered, Todoroki openly admitted that he liked being with Midoriya. After revealing that, there was no way that Midoriya could let the little warning voices in his head keep him from yearning to build a good relationship with Todoroki.

After all, his role as a prince and future king was to build good relations with not just Flamuralis, which would be easy since he was already getting to know Todoroki, but the Grasslands, and eventually the other kingdoms that resided far from Yuuei. 

For now, he would trust the ‘fate’ that brought Todoroki and him together.

So like that, Midoriya spent the next hour or so explaining some of the terrain of Yuuei that helped him strategize where to build the network of soldier bases that would have efficient communication and be able to strongly support each other if needed. This was pretty secret information, only a handful of royals including the main judge Aizawa, All Might, and Midoriya knew about it. Other than that, it was only the soldiers and castle guards. But he confided in Todoroki, since the prince seemed nothing like the king, Endeavor. Midoriya was thankful for this. 

“That’s… a lot to have thought about.” Todoroki responded once Midoriya had finished.

“It was, and it wasn’t. It was easy because of how much I had traveled and known about Yuuei already. The harder part was actually getting those plans accepted by our court. Many argued that building those new posts would waste too many resources, and how it would be difficult to keep all of them in check since there were more than there was previously. Luckily, the more important judges and King All Might, understood the good and security that would come from them. There’s actually one not too far from here, we plan to stopping by to inspect.”

“I see…” Todoroki responded again. “Your plans were acknowledged by even the king?” he asked.

Midoriya nodded enthusiastically. “He was the main supporter. Even though he’s been arrogant on accepting protection from others since he’s the strongest person in our kingdom, I’m glad he understood that I just wanted to help ease his burdens a little… it’s what keep pushing me forward the most.”

Todoroki sat back and began to think about all that Midoriya had revealed to him. “You’re quite important to your kingdom, aren’t you?”

Midoriya thought about that a little. Boy would Todoroki be surprised if he had known Midoriya was actually a prince, same as he was, and was in fact very important to the kingdom. “I guess so,” was all he replied, smiling. 

“I can see why,” Todoroki interjected. Suddenly he stood up and started to walk towards the stairs of the bath, bringing all of Midoriya’s fears to life.

Midoriya furiously attempted to distract himself with random thoughts once Todoroki had revealed more of his body. ‘DO NOT LOOK’ was also pounding around in his head. Unfortunately, he caught glimpse of Todoroki’s bare back. Unfortunately, he was able to see all the dips and crevices of Todoroki’s muscles rub and bump against each other while he walked. Unfortunately, he was able to notice how toned and strong they looked, how worthy they seemed of belonging to a prince. Unfortunately, Midoriya would now associate any glimpse of any back with that he was seeing and experiencing now. 

“You don’t have any sort of malicious vibe,” Todoroki continued, stepping out of the bath now. “You’d probably be able to befriend anyone you wanted to. It’s a bit terrifying.” 

He finally wrapped his towel around his waist. Luckily. Midoriya’s insistent eyes hadn’t traveled anywhere past Todoroki’s back. Maybe another time, but not now. Midoriya swore he would ram his head against a wall later for this thought.

“I-In a way, it could be.” Midoriya stumbled to say, still flustered from what he had just saw.

“Are you cold?” Todoroki asked, now facing him. 

“N-no, w-why?” Midoriya tried to respond. Todoroki had noticed his stutters.

“That’s why I got out, the water seems to have dropped in temperature, I suppose it’s because we had been sitting in it for so long. It’s quite late too,” Todoroki pointed out.

It was pretty late, about 12:30 or even 1:00 am now.  
Midoriya had finally composed himself enough to avoid stuttering. “I suppose you’re right, we should get going.” He too stepped out of the bath with eyes downcast, and slipped his towel around his waist.

“You’re pretty toned.” Todoroki said. 

Midoriya’s eyes grew wide. He felt odd looking at Todoroki, but apparently Todoroki didn’t feel the same way. So now Todoroki was probably eyeing him down. In what way? That didn’t matter, he just was.

“I thought you were joking about sparring, but I can see you were serious about it.” Todoroki said next, moving on from the subject. Perhaps he had noticed how uncomfortable it made Midoriya. 

“Of c-course, I had no reason to lie to you.” Midoriya stuttered again.

Todoroki raised an eyebrow to himself, and continued to walk out into the locker room, with Midoriya trailing behind him. They both dressed into their robes quietly, and let their towels rest on their heads.

The bath and locker room were fairly silent, but once they walked out into the halls, noise was gradually growing louder and louder as they approached the common rooms. Eventually they made it to the dining room, where groups of people were still gathered in circular tables and enjoying their food whilst conversing. Midoriya and Todoroki peered at them from above, resting their hands on the wooden railings.

Once some of the aromas from the food hit Midoriya’s nose, a big grumble from his stomach greeted them. This situation reminded him of when Iida had found him in a restaurant a few months back. 

“Have you eaten, Todoroki?” he asked. 

Todoroki didn’t get to respond because his stomach did the talking, grumbling almost as loud as Midoriya’s. 

Midoriya understood and laughed a bit. “Let’s get something to eat before going to bed?” he suggested, putting his hands over his empty stomach. 

Todoroki nodded and also did the same, “Yes. I hadn’t noticed how hungry I was until now,” he revealed. “I’m surprised many others are also enjoying meals this late, is this a Yuuei thing?” 

Midoriya began to lead themselves over to the stairs to get down there. “A Yuuei thing? No, I don't think so. Most of the residents at the castle sleep early to wake up early. Honestly, when we were arriving, I noticed how the people from this village are more active than usual at night. My friends joked that they’re my ‘type’ of people since I do the same,” he let out a shy laugh. “Do your people retire early as well?”

“Towards the central of the kingdom. But the villages around the border are like this, mainly because they act as the ‘first defense’ of the kingdom, but I assume it’s to have more time to spend freely like this,” Todoroki explained. 

“Mmm,” Midoriya hummed to confirm that he comprehended what Todoroki was saying. Once they got to the bottom, a waitress began to lead them to an empty table. 

“Just you two gentlemen?” she asked, getting ready to hand them some silverware.

“Yes,” Midoriya replied, pulling a chair out to sit on it. Todoroki did the same. 

The waitress proceeded to hand them silverware and recite some of their plates of food, only giving them a few options since most of the food had run out and they weren’t going to make more until the morning. 

Todoroki and Midoriya settled on a bowl of rice and lamb soup each. The two remained fairly quiet while they waited for the food to arrive. The lack of sleep was starting to catch up on the both of them, even on Midoriya since he had been awake since early morning. They both just stared at various objects in the room, Midoriya being keen to avoid eye contact with the other. At one point, Todoroki let out a yawn, which Midoriya thought was super cute, and then promised to ram his head into another wall for thinking that. Sleepiness looked good on the prince. 

Not a lot of time had passed until the food arrived, since everything was pretty much already made. The lamb soup smelled so appetizing, and it was fairly hot. Midoriya ate a few spoonfuls of rice before cooling down some of the soup and enjoying it. This place was certainly generous with it’s proportions of meat, and aspect that Midoriya greatly appreciated. 

Eventually Midoriya satisfied his stomach enough to stop eating and begin talking again. “So are you going to leave in the morning again?” he asked, wiping his mouth with a folded handkerchief.

Todoroki was finishing a mouthful of food that he was chewing on before he could respond. Suddenly he realized that the inn got really quiet, more groups of people were leaving by the handful. For some reason, Todoroki was glad for this, like he was glad when it had happened back in the baths. 

“That was the plan,” he began to reply, “but it seems that a few rain clouds were spotted on their way over here. If it’s expected to rain, we might not leave until that’s over. The burden would, again, be too much for our horses.”

Midoriya hadn’t heard anything about rain, not yet at least. “Oh, I didn’t know that.” he truthfully responded. He was sure it was something that Iida would have known about, so it was strange that he was barely hearing about this now.

“What about you?” Todoroki asked quietly, taking a sip of water. 

“Ah… I haven't discussed anything with Iida about the rain, but like I mentioned earlier, we’re going to visit the soldier base near here. Our horses are fairly rested so I think we’ll continue traveling north from here.” Midoriya explained. Deep down, did he secretly wish their horses were fatigued as well?

Another thought popped into his head. Since Todoroki would be stuck at the inn anyways, in the company of the king which he clearly disliked, perhaps he could…

“Would you like to come with me? Er, with us, to the soldier base.” Midoriya inquired. The consequences of what he had said didn’t have time to go through his mind before he asked this. “Y’know… since I was explaining them earlier to you, it’d be important for you to see a neighboring kingdoms’ defenses as a prince, right?”

“Seems a little dangerous on your behalf,” Todoroki answered, “You trust me enough?”

“I do,” was all Midoriya said.

Todoroki remained quiet for a second. “I hope I dont become a burden in a future, to your kingdom.”

Midoriya didn’t hesitate to deny this. “I have strong intuition that you won’t. Do you remember how you mentioned enjoying my company? I feel likewise.”

“... I see,” Todoroki let out. He sighed and laid back in his chair. “Very well. I’ll go explain our plan with the old man.”

Oh, Midoriya had forgotten about him. “Ah… how will you do so? I feel like he wouldn’t….”

“I prefer not to tell you how, but i’ve got definite reason for him to agree with it. I suppose it’s time for us to rest now.” Leaving Midoriya slightly intrigued, Todoroki waved down the same waitress from earlier. 

She picked up most of their plates, and began to speak with Todoroki before she left. “Are you sure that’s all you’d like? I wouldn’t mind serving you long after the night is over…” she said, winking.

She went right for it. Totally uncalled for. Now this really felt like the other time with Iida, except instead of being annoyed, Midoriya felt… well, you can guess. 

“Do you not sleep?” asked Todoroki, with slight concern.

Ohh, it went right over his head. How marvelous.

The waitress blushed with embarrassment. “Ah, well, I do, but I’m used to staying up. Most of this village is, since mostly everyone travels for their work and arrive at all times of the day. Most shops and families stay awake to welcome them, including us.”

“Ah, that’s why.” Midoriya said, hitting his left palm with his right fist. 

“Still…” she said, “If you plan on sleeping now, if you need company… either of you.” she added, also eyeing Midoriya. 

Midoriya rudely thought about another specific job that typically happens during nights. He blushed, and Todoroki noticed. 

“I’m afraid my room only contains one bed, but if you need a room to stay in, I can buy one for you.” Todoroki offered.

At this point, Midoriya couldn’t help but chuckle. Did he really not get it?

“N-no, it’s fine.” the waitress stammered. “Have a restful night.” she said, before returning to the kitchen.

“How odd…” Todoroki mumbled. He was certain that he was trying to be helpful to the girl that apparently didn’t have a place to stay at. 

Now Midoriya was laughing, as they scooted their chairs into the table and began to walk back upstairs. “Todoroki, you could’ve been nicer to her.”

“How much nicer could I have been? I assume not a lot of people offer to buy others a room” Todoroki said seriously. 

“She didn’t just… want a room.” Midoriya said between small laughs. He looked at Todoroki and noticed that he still looked confused. “You know, it’s nothing you should worry yourself about.” He decided it was better to keep him in the dark, in case it happened again. Seriously though, this couldn’t have been the first time someone offered themselves to easily to Todoroki.

But then again, he was a prince, probably surrounded by people that respect him far too much to do anything but business and serve him. He was also fairly young, despite his looks.  
“Oh, where is your room Shoto?” Midoriya asked. They were close to his room, but he was willing to walk Todoroki.

“It’s on the fourth floor, but I’m going to see the man first. He’s training somewhere in the basement.” Todoroki explained. “Yours?”

“At the end of the hallway to our right,” Midoriya informed him. “I guess we’ll part here.”

Todoroki nodded. “Where do we meet in the morning?”

“Hmm,” Midoriya thought about it. “Outside by the horse stable at eight?”

“Got it. Well, see you then.”

“Yup.”

The two nodded their heads at each other and began to walk in opposite directions. Could Todoroki really pull it off?

When Midoriya made it to his room and slipped in, he saw two of the three beds occupied. Uraraka and Iida were sound asleep.

He tiptoed around the room over to his bed, prepared to fall on it and immediately fall in a well-deserving deep sleep, but he heard commotion coming from Iida’s bed.

“Why are you so late?” Iida asked in a very sleepy tone.

“I… you won’t believe who I ran into, again.” Midoriya replied, getting under the bedsheets.

Iida groaned. “They’re here too?”

“Yeah,” Midoriya whispered back. “But I didn't see Endeavor. Oh, also, is it okay if Shoto comes with us to the base tomorrow?”

Iida remained quiet, which prompted Midoriya to think that perhaps it was a mistake inviting a prince from another kingdom to see one of their bases. 

“... Let’s talk about it in the morning.” Iida sighed, turning in his bed.

Midoriya took this as their cue to fall back to sleep, so he got comfortable in his bed and let his last bit of consciousness fade away.

-  
Todoroki was right, the morning was accompanied by low amounts of light and the pitter-patter of rain falling onto the windows and side of the room.

It was now their second day ot travels, and today would certainly be more interesting than the day before. Similar to the event of the celebration back at the castle, Midoriya and his friends would be accompanied by Shoto, the prince of Flamuralis, to a soldier base not too far from the village they’re currently staying at.

That’s only if Todoroki was able to convince his father, the king of Flamuralis, Endeavor, to let him accompany Midoriya.

Nonetheless, Midoriya believed in him and got out of bed to get dressed. Neither Urakaka nor Iida were present in the room, but Mike was there, sitting at a desk by Iida’s bed. 

“Good morning your highness,” he greeted, getting up and bowing. 

“Good morning,” Midoriya responded, stretching. “What time is it?”

Mike took out a watch from a pocket on his coat. “Seven-thirty.” he responded, closing it and placing it back.

“That’s good,” Midoriya said, relieved. Uraraka and Iida were probably ready to leave, and Todoroki would be joining them soon. So he started to get dress, letting Mike chose his garments for that day.

None of the outfits that Midoriya had brought were particularly flashy, but his outfit for that day did have a hint of flashiness, not because the soldiers were in on his prince identity, but because he was acknowledged as the creator of the bases plan. To the soldier at least, he was seen as a respectful figure. 

A white cravat completed his look, and he proceeded to thank Mike and head out to meet Iida.

He was right, they were both standing near the door discussing some things while looking at a map. Midoriya greeted them with a casual hello.

“Mornin’ Deku,” Uraraka greeted him back, hugging him. “We missed you at dinner… but…” she leaned in close to his ears, “I hear you had plenty of fun on your own anyways, didn’t you?”

Fortunately, Midoriya was still too sleepy to react normally and begin to flail his limbs around while turning red and stuttering an opposition. “Actually yeah, I did. Speaking of which, Iida,” he turned to Iida, who was still busy looking at the map. “Is it alright?”

Iida took a second to look up at Midoriya. He sighed. “It is, but I’m still weary. I figured they’d run into one and snoop around anyways…”

Midoriya just gave him an enthusiastic thumbs up, which earned a glare from Iida. Suddenly Iida got really close to him as well. “I know you’re not… out yet… but it wouldn’t hurt to start acting like one.” 

At first, the term ‘out’ confused Midoriya, but soon he understood what Iida was trying to say. To be a prince is to be cautious, and to be cautious is not to share anything unnecessary with unfamiliar people. Todoroki didn’t feel unfamiliar though.

“My gut has led me this far,” Midoriya responded. “I wouldn’t doubt it now.”

Uraraka noticed this somewhat tense environment. “It’ll sure be fun to see everyone there wouldn’t it be, Midoriya? Maybe they’ll let us train with them,” Uraraka said cheerfully, throwing a few punches and kicks.

She was right, at the base they could probably all practice their skills. It’s be much appreciated, since Midoriya had barely gotten any practice in since his intense studies were assigned. If he was careful, he might even be able to practice with his quirk, One-For-All. It had been far too long since he had last used it, and was scared that he might have lost the control he had built up until then. He would surely either confirm or debunk his suspicions later on.

“You’re right, Uraraka!” Midoriya enthusiastically responded, getting into a stance pose. “I’m excited to practice with the new sword from Mei.”

“That piece was truly amazing,” Iida chimed in, having left their previous conversation behind. He understood too that the main goal of this trip was to relax Midoriya, since had had earned it. It didn’t mean that they could all drop their guards down, but Iida would try his best for Midoriya. “It’s been awhile since we were in any type of action together, huh?”

Midoriya nodded. “Well compared to me, I’m jealous that your whole life revolves around being in action.”

Iida laughed. “I do it all for you.”

“... Sounds intimate,” a voice behind them spoke. Midoriya jumped a little, and they all turned to see who it was.

It was Todoroki. What surprised them the most wasn’t his presence, but rather his look. To put it simply, he looked… bad.

“S-Shoto…” Midoriya stumbled to say. Todoroki just shook his head at him, prompting him to not voice what he wanted to say next.

“I’m glad to see I made it on time, are we ready to leave?”

“Yes, your highness,” Iida responded, “We are just waiting for one more chest from our room and then we will leave.We won’t be eating until we get to the base, which will be in about an hour, is that fine?”

Todoroki nodded. “Thankfully Deku and I had a satisfying meal last night. Also, I hope you don’t mind, but two of my guards will be following behind us.” he pointed at two men already seated on horses starting to come around from the side of the Inn.

“That’s fine.” Iida said. “So you’ll be coming in our carriage?”

Todoroki nodded.

Midoriya felt relieved.

“Very well.” Iida responded. 

Mike appeared from the second floor and made his way down with the last chest, exiting the Inn and then placing it on the carriage. “That’s it.” he announced.

With that, Iida prompted Todoroki to get onto the carriage first, followed by Midoriya, Uraraka, and eventually himself.

Once all boarded, the carriage began to move, and they were on their way to the base.

-

So despite Uraraka’s excitement back at the Inn, she fell asleep 15 minutes into the ride. She’s not really to blame, since the route they were taking only had vegetation along the path to entertain them. She was seated next to Iida, and across from Iida was Midoriya, who was sitting next to Todoroki. The carriage was fairly large so they aren't touching shoulders or anything, unfortunately, but Uraraka had gotten closer to Iida to rest her head on his shoulder. 

Within a few minutes of that happening, Iida also began to let his eyes flutter, and his head rested on top of Uraraka’s. It was cute how their heads allowed them to rest perfectly on each other, without any apparent discomfort. 

Midoriya couldn’t tell whether this was a coincidence or not, since they should have been able to sleep more than him.Either way, he was thankful that now he could talk more comfortably with Todoroki. Not that he minded his friend’s presence, but Todoroki might’ve.

“I know you told me not to worry, but…” he began to say, looking over his shoulder at Todoroki. 

“It’s not what you think.” Todoroki responded quickly, not budging his eyes from the window. “He just forced me to train, not all bad.”

“... All night, I’m assuming.” Midoriya added.

Todoroki sighed, but then nodded. 

Midoriya’s mouth tightened. So Todoroki was running on no sleep, on top of being exhausted from having been worked to the bone, apparently.

“You didn’t have to come.” Midoriya told him in a worried tone.

“I’m not weak.” Todoroki snapped back. “This is nothing, I’ve had sleepless nights before.”

Midoriya felt defeated. He knew Todoroki really disliked talking about it, but he couldn’t, he truly could not not worry about him. But how could he show his concern in a way that wouldn’t offend Todoroki? How could he let him know that he wanted to protect him despite the latter’s refusal towards it?

“Look, Shoto, I worry because…”

Dare he say it? Reveal a fragment of the true feelings he had been fostering for this fellow prince?

Todoroki turned to look at him, awaiting his next words.

“Because…. We were planning on sparring and training at the base… I can’t fight you and give it my all knowing that you’re exhausted, it wouldn’t sit right with me.” This wasn’t the truth that Midoriya wanted to reveal, but it wasn’t a lie either. Their combat would be unfair.

Todoroki sat quietly and accepted these words. Midoriya had chosen them correctly. “You’re right.” he simply responded. “Maybe I can rest a little when we arrive… while you get the inspections out of the way.”

Midoriya nodded. “Sounds good. We’ll prepare a room for you right away, and come for you sometime in the afternoon, or when you wake up, whichever comes first.”

Silently, the two agreed to drop the subject and talk about something else. Todoroki started first by asking, “Those words Iida said to you at the Inn… and the ones from the celebration the other night… what kind of relationship do you two have?”

Midoriya froze for a second, but answered quickly to prevent Todoroki from thinking. “Ah, Iida… he likes to… protect me in a way. I think it’s because he’s older than me. When I first moved into the castle, him and I were also assigned to work together on many things, since he’s one of the captains for the guards. He has a strong will and sense of justice, I guess it felt natural for him to feel protective of someone like me.” Midoriya chuckled. This is the best way he could explain it without revealing that Iida was actually his personal guard as well as a captain.

“‘Let me carry your burdens’... he also said something like that.” Todoroki noted. “The way he treats you reminds me of my personal guard.”

...So maybe Midoriya didn't do a good job at making Iida sound normal. Surely Iida was to blame.

“You have a personal guard?” Midoriya tried to ask innocently. 

He succeeded, and Todoroki began to answer his question. “Yes. She didn’t come on this trip though, which is unfortunate because I’d have liked for her to meet and assess you.” Todoroki clarified.

“‘She’? Your personal guard is-”

“A woman, yes. She’s stronger than most of the people I know, a truly talented swordsman. I’ve known her since I was born. She stayed behind since the old man and I came out.”

“Ah, I see.” Midoriya replied. Now that was interesting, another fact to put into the notebook that he was going to write about Todoroki. For educational and research purposes, of course.

Across from them, Uraraka made a quiet whimper. Perhaps they were being too loud.

“We’ll continue speaking at the base.” Todoroki whispered, minding the volume of his voice.

How generous of him, Midoriya’s heart thumped a little harder than usual. He just nodded quietly at Todoroki.

The two turned away from each other to look out the window, but Todoroki began to speak again.

“Deku?” he asked quietly. 

Midoriya faced him.

“Do you mind if I borrow your shoulder?”

Oh. Midoriya was not expecting that. “You wish to rest?” he asked.

Todoroki nodded. What adorned his face was the most precious hint of pout, like a child who truly was in the last minutes of consciousness. Quickly, Midoriya nodded and scooted closer to Todoroki, he would do anything to obey a prince after all. 

So Todoroki proceeded to lay his head on Midoriya’s shoulder until he found a comfortable position, and slowly blinked his eyes until they eventually stayed shut.

Where does one even begin to describe how Midoriya felt?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Forever appreciating the kudos and comments! 
> 
> Apologies for any typos, didn't get to proofread but I wanted to post this before it got too late.
> 
> How are we liking Todoroki's vibe?? Not too friendly, but not too mean either. To Midoriya at least.  
> Please keep in mind that I'm writing him somewhat OOC because he doesn't have the scar... yet... so lets enjoy this somewhat peaceful Todoroki while we can :')


	9. Running in the Same Direction

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Uraraka, Iida, Todoroki, and Midoriya enjoy their day visiting a nearby soldiers base, but it seems like there is always a force present trying to rain on their parade.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello again everyone!
> 
> thank you thank YOUUUU for the kudos and ESPECIALLY for the comments, they feed my heart uwu
> 
> it's been a week so ENJOY this longish chapter  
> (also i learned how to format, yay)

So now Midoriya was the only one left awake, and he swore to himself that he wouldn’t fall asleep on the **prince** that was currently sleeping on his shoulder. He had done a good job showing Todoroki worry and care without offending him, which somehow resulted in Todoroki asking to rest on his shoulder.

It took Midoriya a minute to properly register what was going on. In the moment, he just agreed immediately because Todoroki asked and it really did look like he was going to fall asleep in any position, so Midoriya figured it was best to obey his request. 

His head was surprisingly light, it really felt like a child was resting on him. Todoroki’s hair was also incredibly soft… probably due to all the pampering he had mentioned earlier. Midoriya opted to keep his head facing straight to prevent any discomfort, but his eyes were glued onto the man. He observed the soft rise of his chest with each breath he took, and then the decline following his exhale. His hands were also clasped in his lap, gently folded and resting on each other. Eventually, Todoroki’s mouth slightly parted, and fraction of his breaths would exit from there. If some beam of light had suddenly shined on Todoroki from the window, Midoriya would be convinced that he was an actual angel. 

This prompted Midoriya to start thinking more in depth about Todoroki, like wondering what he must’ve been like as a child. Certainly if he looked this cute now as a young adult, he must’ve been unbearably adorable as a child. That brought Midoriya some peace at mind, but then he started to wonder about Todoroki’s actual childhood. It seemed that he had an incredibly strained relationship with his father, Endeavor, though Midoriya could guess why. Judging from a distance, Todoroki seemed to be intelligent, perceptive, and strong, but Midoriya wondered what mental traumas must have been haunting him. It was because of those that Todoroki was also cold and unwilling to accept ‘help’ from others and only carrying himself forward. Despite how Todoroki tried to hide these traits from him, Midoriya still noticed. Just how much saving did he actually need?

Midoriya let these thoughts fade, since overthinking about them wouldn’t do anyone any good. He decided to focus on the present, surely he’d be able to meet with Todoroki enough times to learn all about him, for educational and princely purposes of course. 

Suddenly the carriage hit some debris on the road, and jumped a little. Todoroki seemed unphased, not waking up from his apparent-deep sleep, but Iida’s and Uraraka’s heads bumped each other and both shot their eyes open. Iida’s eyes darted all around the inside of the carriage, but then immediately focused on the scene of Todoroki sleeping on Midoriya in front of him.

Midoriya deeply blushed, understanding what the situation probably looked liked to Iida. He quickly mouthed ‘friends’ silently, while Uraraka also saw them and chuckled into her hands.

The rest of the ride carried on like this, with both Iida’s and Uraraka’s eyes darting over to Midoriya and Todoroki every couple of minutes. They decided to remain silent as well to respect the prince in his peaceful slumber.

Eventually they saw what seemed like a gate outside from the window. They had finally arrived.

It was still raining, and later the group would see all of the mud that the carriage wheels accumulated from the journey. Luckily the area where they would load off was covered and they wouldn’t have to step out into the rain. Uraraka and Iida got off first. They greeted the soldiers who had met them outside, and Iida began to explain that they needed a room prepared immediately. He also informed them that the prince of Flamuralis was with them. 

“Seriously?” asked one of them. “That’s….”

“Unexpected, I know.” Iida said. He then proceeded to pat the soldier on his back. “Nothing we can’t handle. Treat him as a visitor like us.”

The soldier nodded. “Yessir.” He called over a few soldiers and told them about the room, and then turned back to Iida. “He can stay in one of the rooms we already prepared for you all. We will prepare the next room while you are traveling around the base. Do you know…” the soldier faced the guards that had been traveling behind the carriage, “If they will be stationed in the same room as him?”

Iida got close to the soldier and spoke softly. “For now, it’s same to assume that no, so prepare separate rooms for them as well.”

“Understood.” replied the soldier. He waved over a group of soldiers that were posted by the doors, and once they came over he began to explain the room arrangements. 

Now Midoriya was left to awaken the prince. He had waited until he was certain that they had a room they could immediately take him into so he wouldn’t have to wait around. Iida gave him a nod from outside, so that meant they did.

He quickly sorted through a variety of ways he could go about to awaken Todoroki. He thought about gently patting his head, or slowly moving his shoulder. He could also just repeat his name softly and gradually get louder. Or he could kiss-

“...Midoriya....”

….

What? What did he say? Had Midoriya heard him correctly? Did Todoroki really just say his name?

The sudden shock made Midoriya jump a little, which is how the prince ended up waking up. His head rose from Midoriya’s shoulder, and he blinked a few times. He blinked a final time and rubbed his eyes with the sides of his hands, and then faced Midoriya. 

“We’re here?” he said in the most gentle tone ever.

Midoriya, still in shock, only managed to nod furiously. 

Todoroki looked concerned. “Are you okay?” he asked.

Midoriya would’ve preferred to answer ‘no’ truthfully, but him acting suspicious now would probably worsen things even more. “You said some name,” he said casually, scooting away from Todoroki.

Todoroki looked puzzled for a second, but then his face cleared up. “Oh,” he began to speak, “Was it something like ‘Midoriya’?”

Midoriya froze up again but managed to nod.

Todoroki sighed. “I don’t know why, but the name keeps popping up in my dreams. I don’t know how or why, but it’s been stuck with me for a while.” Midoriya eyed him curiously, which is why he also said, “That’s the truth.”

“... Since how long ago?” Midoriya also asked. Damn, he was freezing up too much. If he continues, he’ll really look suspicious.

Todoroki thought about it. “It’s been a few months.” he replied. “But I don’t think much of it.”

Midoriya was prepared to respond and ask for more details, since he too had a dream but instead of a name it was Todoroki’s hair, but there was a knock on the carriage door. Iida opened it.

“Deku, Your highness,” he greeted them both. “Did you rest well?” he asked Todoroki.

“I did, but I’m prepared for more.” Todoroki truthfully responded. 

“Very well. Deku will accompany you with a soldier to a room prepared for you. Will your guards be staying with you?”

“I’ll be posting them outside my door. I’ll inform them right now.”

With that, Todoroki exited the carriage first, followed by Midoriya. He walked over to his guards and said a few words before they dismounted their horses. They handed over the reins to Mike.

“Pleasure to meet you, your highness,” a soldier approached them and spoke. He introduced himself as Sato, and announced that he would be leading them to the room. He then faced Midoriya. “Welcome back, Sir,” was how he greeted him. “We were very anxious for your arrival, we have some very good results from a couple of your plans.”

Midoriya’s eyes lit up. “Ah, seriously? Is that what you’ve been doing here?”

Sato nodded, beginning to lead them up the stairs through the doors and into the base. 

“Rest well, Todoroki!” Uraraka called from behind them. Todoroki turned around to wave at her and smile as well. 

Once they were inside, nostalgia really hit Midoriya hard. Since this base was one of the closest to the castle, it’s design was similar to it as well. This was also the last base to had been built, and Midoriya was close enough to come and visit often to see it’s progress. He had also spared a lot with most of the soldiers here, so he was excited to meet all of them and present himself as an official adult.

“The most recent was the communication run,” Sato continued explaining, leading them up some stairs. “The results for that… makes it a real honor to have you return here with us.” Sato smiled to himself. He was purposely keeping information back, since he wasn’t completely sure how or why the prince from the neighboring kingdom was staying with them. They had just accepted him as he arrived, but Sato would later interrogate Iida and Midoriya for their decision. It was his duty, too, to protect Yuuei in any way. 

“Prince Todoroki, I will be sending a soldier to inform your guards of our activities and whereabouts so you could join us once you are rested. For now, you will be staying in here.” Sato gestured to a room a few feet away from them, and Todoroki nodded. Sato walked up to it and opened the door, allowing Todoroki and Midoriya to also step inside. The room was fairly spacious, yet only had one bed. Surely this was the room Midoriya was going to stay in.

“Oh, Sato, were you told we were going to stay here for tonight? I overheard how you had prepared rooms for all of us.” Midoriya told him.

Sato nodded. “That’s what I last heard. It makes sense that there’s a lot of information to be exchanged, and I heard you wanted to train with us as well.”

Midoriya blinked absentmindedly. Iida hadn’t told them that they’d stay the night, either. Rather than worry about himself, he worried about Todoroki. Would Endeavor have let Todoroki come if he had known they would spend a night there? It did make sense though, it was only about ten in the morning but they had plenty of things to do that’d keep them busy the entire day. 

“Shoto…” he began to say, but Todoroki interrupted him.

“It’s fine, that’s why the guards were sent with me.” he explained. One of them had actually just arrived too, placing a chest in the empty room at the opposite end of the bed. It probably had Todoroki’s clothes. 

Midoriya was surprised. “I didn’t even see them add that onto the carriage.”

Todoroki waved off the guard. “Yeah, they’re pretty… sneaky. Not to worry you, they’re under _my_ command, not the old man’s.”

Midoriya waved his hands in front of him. “No suspicion here.” he assured Todoroki, to which Todoroki smiled. 

Sato just quietly observed them from the doorway. “Well, I’ll go confirm our plans for today with Iida and invite them inside. You’ll know where to find us.” Sato dismissed himself and bowed, then turning and exiting the room.

So then it was just Todoroki and Midoriya in the room, with the guard posted at each side of the door outside. 

“Well… “I’ll leave so you can rest now,” Midoriya began to dismiss himself as well. “Are you going to sleep in your clothes?”

Todoroki nodded. “I don’t mind dirtying the bed, since it’s not mine.” he said indifferently. 

Now _that_ sounded princely. 

“Ah, okay. Well then, I’m off.” Midoriya finally excused himself. “I’ll see you later, come prepared.” Midoriya added slyly, offering Todoroki a smile.

Todoroki just nodded and yawned before walking towards the bed. He must’ve really been sleepy to have reacted so calmly to Midoriya’s taunt.

So Midoriya left the room and gently closed the door behind him, nodding at both guards before he walked off to find the rest.

-

“Two-Two hours?!?” Midoriya exclaimed, completely taken aback by this information.

Sato nodded with satisfaction. “We had all the bases write a summary along with the time that the news arrived and departed to the next base. The first report from the Tena village in the far south was at 5:34 am and ours was at 6:50.”

“Holy shit…” Iida said slowly, taking a look at the reports. 

“Holy shit indeed.” Sato agreed. “What you’re holding is copies of all the reports from the different bases, they were made identical to the originals and sent along with the messengers until they all made it here too.”

“This is… this is beyond amazing.” Midoriya said, still in complete awe. 

To put things into perspective, news from the Tena village originally took anywhere from eighteen hours to an entire day to get to the castle. It took so long mainly due to how difficult and rigorous the journey was. It was too much for one sole person to relay the information back and forth, so initially it was already planned to have a chosen set of messengers from the old bases help relay the information to one another, but it was poorly executed due to the disregard of the terrain between each base. The time was shortened, but only by three or four hours. 

Now, thanks to Midoriya, bases were carefully placed along paths and stretches of land that made it easier for the messengers to travel to and fro. The horses wouldn’t get as exhausted as well. This was all due to his extensive research on the land and terrain, as well as the speed of the castle-bred horses.

“Ah, I’ve heard that these are barely from today, why did you wait until then to give us some results of the plans?” Midoriya asked, truly curious. Certainly, such a breakthrough should have already been told to the castle. 

“Well since we found out you were going to pay us a visit, we wanted the most recent results to present to you. When we first tried out the plans, it took some time for the messengers to learn the paths, so it took around five to four hours. But now all of them thoroughly understand where to go, which is why they’re gradually getting faster.” Sato explained.

“Midoriya… this is really… really good.” Uraraka said quietly, also reading the reports that Iida was handing to her.

“We’re all amazed, and proud to have such a genius plan and layout come from you.” Sato told Midoriya, bowing. “I am sure the king will be most pleased with these results, which is why I want you to present them to him yourself. They are the fruits of your labor, after all.”

Not just the king, but the court will be pleased as well. This will prove his usefulness to those that initially doubted him.

“Very well, I will upon our return. Thank you very much for the carefully-assembled reports , I truly appreciate all the effort that went into this.” Midoriya thanked him.

Sato nodded. “Well, that was the most urgent thing. I also have something else to present to you,” he opened another one of the cabinets in his desk and pulled out what seemed to be another stack of reports. “These are reports from the bases of the last month. I suspected that Iida might be keeping you in the dark about it, but there's some villain activity starting to stir up around several bases. Nothing bad, but a few conversations here and there about some plans they’ve got. Soldiers are constantly on the lookout and infiltrating them.” he explained.

He was right, it had been awhile since Midoriya had heard about anything regarding villains. He knew it was bound to happen due to all the tasks that he’s been focusing on, but he didn’t expect to be hearing about them so suddenly. Nonetheless, he gladly reached for the first report and started to flip through it. 

Meanwhile Iida looked visibly irritated. “You’re disobeying orders, Sato.” he said in a low voice. 

Sato just shrugged. “Secrets only hurt. Besides, you really don’t want to let the smartest person in our kingdom in on this?”

Iida just gave him a disappointing head shake, but moved on anyways. “Well, if that’s all you had to tell us, shall we continue our day here?”

Uraraka’s stomach heard this and agreed by grumbling. “Perhaps we should move onto breakfast?” she professionally added. 

“Oh right, we haven’t eaten yet” said Midoriya, putting the report down. “Thank you for these, Sato. I’ll read them throughout my journey.”

“Don’t trouble yourself with them now, focus on relaxing until you return back to the castle.” Sato suggested, which prompted Midoriya to nod at him.

“Todoroki won’t be able to eat…” Midoriya noted out loud.

“I’m sure he’ll hold out until he’s awake,” Uraraka added. “We’ll leave food prepared for him too.” she assured Midoriya. 

He felt comforted by that. “Alright then, what’s on the menu, Sato?”

-

Midoriya, Iida, Uraraka, and Sato spent the next hour eating their breakfast in one of the halls, Sato leading the discussion with his stories about his travels to several bases. He commented on the different fighting styles each base is starting to have, creating a diversity of martial arts that Uraraka and Midoriya seemed excited to hear about. They scolded Iida for not informing them about that, and as a result Midoriya asked Sato to use some of the new techniques he had acquired in a fight with Iida. 

That was what the trio were most excited about, training and fighting and sparring. Uraraka the most, since she didn’t have much time to do these things back at the castle. Midoriya was probably as rusty as her though, but he didn’t back down when Iida also challenged him in a spar.

“We’ll use wooden sticks, for your sake” Iida added, fixing his glasses.

Midoriya just stared at him intensely. “Don’t get upset when I end up hurting that ‘beautiful’ face of yours.” he said, taking a sip of his tea.

Sato and Uraraka looked at each other and began laughing. The mood was starting to get a lot better.

After breakfast, Midoriya visited several of the different soldier quarters, introducing himself to a handful of new recruits. He also talked a lot with soldiers he had gotten to know from his previous visits, and they shared new aspects of their life that had happened since. 

Most interesting was hearing about how all the soldiers felt that their families were prospering. Because of the newfound safety from the layout of the bases, business is conducted at all times of the day. There also isn’t much need to work as rigorously as before. Thanks to All Might, other kingdoms were always willing to trade resources regularly, so in a way there was always plenty to go around, reducing the prices of everything and especially food. The people had also seemed to focus on living lives focused on nurturing and being with their loved ones, instead of working rigorously to become ‘rich’ and such. ‘Prosperous’ seemed to have gained a different meaning.

After meeting with what seemed like the rest of the base, the four decided to eat a light lunch before moving onto their anticipated fighting activities. It was about seven now, and the sun was beginning to set.

They were served a delicious bread, a variety of tea’s, and some freshly baked salmon. The salmon truly made an impression on the three visitors. Sato saw their faces light up with satisfaction.

“This is amazingggg,” Midoriya sang, quickly filling his mouth with more salmon.

“Your recipes are truly to be feared, Sato.” Iida also said between bitefuls of food. “I’m still hurt that you left us.” he added.

Sato laughed. “I know, I know, but duty calls, and this is where it was answered.” he explained. “This fish is actually fairly new, have you had it it at the castle yet?” he asked all of them.

Uraraka and Iida shook their head, but Midoriya remembered about the taste from long ago. “I think I had it, but a long time ago. It was when the king had just finished introducing a certain lord or something from the kingdom across the grand lake.”

“The Asui family,” Sato added. Midoriya inclined his head. “Yes, that kingdom is also surrounded by the sea, so they are the ones responsible for trading all the resources that come from there. It was yesterday that they offered a large shipment of things, as a gift of a five year long impeccable peace with Yuuei. I hear they’ll also be attending the royal ball that's going to take place in a month.” 

“I can’t believe it's been five years since then, I remember the castle being really joyful for having created an official relationship with them. I haven’t focused on studying them because the court believed it was more important to learn about Flamuralis and the Grasslands first, but they sound really intriguing.” Midoriya explained. As far as he knew, they had a princess too.

“They are, just wait until you see what their quirks are.” Sato said, finishing his plate. 

“Speaking of quirks, how has yours been Sato? Iida asked, also beginning to finish his food. 

“It’s definitely better. I can keep the strength going for thirty minutes now, more than enough time to keep any tough enemy at bay until more help arrives.” Sato informed them. “There hasn’t been much need to use it though, with all the peace. I only use it when soldiers want to test their own endurance against me.”

“Better than nothing,” Midoriya threw in. He was actually envious of that.

-

Soon the four retired to their rooms to change for the practices. On their way to their rooms, Midoriya hung back to walk alongside Uraraka. “You’ve been awfully quiet, what’s going on in that mind of yours?” he asked her.

She chuckled a little. “That's usually my line, like shouldn’t you be worrying about Todoroki right now? You seem to have a schedule for that.” She saw Midoriya blush but didn’t let him respond. “I’m totally focused on our fights later on, I feel really motivated.” she breath heavily, throwing a kick in the air. “Iida even told me I could probably go against you.” she laughed.

Midoriya groaned. “He’s been getting too bold… I feel like you truly all have forgotten who I really am.”

“Oh come on, don’t throw that at us.” Uraraka opposed him. “Besides, you like it better like this, don’t you? Somehow I feel that you like being teased…. kinda of like a…”

“Masochist.” Midoriya finished her though. “Iida thinks so too, but I have no idea where you guys get the idea that I like it.” Midoriya frowned.

Uraraka threw an arm around him and squeezed him tight. “It’s okay, let's hope Todoroki is your match, huh?” She ran away before Midoriya could retort. 

Well, she succeeded in making him think about Todoroki. He wondered if the prince had woken up yet, since it’s been a handful of hours. Since he was near his room, he might as well go check on him. It’s the least he could do for his guest, at least. But before he continued walking, he figured it’d be better to bring him some food in case he was awake.

-

He returned to the room a couple of minutes later and greeted the guards. “He hasn’t woken up for anything?” he asked them.

They gently shook their heads. “It’s normal.” Was all they offered.

“...Well… is it okay if I knock at least?” he asked them. He was prepared for them to say no, but surprisingly they said yes, and so he proceeded to knock.

“Prince Todoroki,” he spoke into the side of the door, being mindful and not saying his first name since the guards were there. “It’s me, Deku, I’ve brought some food here if you’re awake. We’re getting ready to go practice now, it’s about seven-thirty.”

He listened for some footsteps or any sound of commotion from the other side of the door, but he heard none. If he had fallen asleep as soon as Midoriya had left him in the morning, that means Todoroki must’ve been asleep for almost ten hours now. That’s a lot, even for a heavy sleeper. So naturally, Midoriya started to worry.

He knocked again, which concerned the guards. “Todoroki.” he said again. The pounding in his heart had drowned out all the noises around him, so he didn't hear the footsteps that gradually got closer to the door and was startled when it suddenly opened. 

Then in a quick second, he was grabbed and pulled into the room. The door was also shut immediately behind him. This automatically set his instincts on fire. In his rush to push away the arm that had grabbed him, he let the plate of food drop from his hand.

But before it was able to shatter on the floor, Todoroki appeared to have caught it. “Sorry… about that.” he apologized, straightening out. “I was in a light dream… your voice woke me up and I wanted to see you immediately.” he explained, walking over to a desk that was on the opposite side of the room and setting the plate down. 

Midoriya was still a bit stunned, so he ignored that last part. “G-geez, Shoto, you nearly gave me a heart attack.” he was able to breathe out eventually. It’s true, his heart was still pounding. Also, the darkness of the room was frightening him. “How can you even see?” he asked, stumbling over to a candle and preparing to light it.

“I’m used to it.” Todoroki responded, already beginning to eat from the plate of food.

Midoriya succeeded in lighting the candle and the room was finally a bit lit. He proceeded to light the candles that were also on the wall. “For some reason, I feel afraid to ask why.” he let out honestly. 

“You should be.” Todoroki told him. There was that mysterious vibe again, but now Midoriya didn’t feel like indulging in it.

“You slept a lot, the guards told me it was normal but I still wanted to check up on you.” Midoriya explained now, also taking a seat on the table next to Todoroki. “Iida and Uraraka are getting ready to spar, I didn’t feel it was fair to start without you.”

Todoroki didn’t respond until he had finished his plate of food, the only noises breaking the silence being those from the utensils hitting the plate. Eventually when he was done, he wiped his mouth with a handkerchief and began to speak. “My body took advantage of my fatigue from last night, so I’m glad you came to get me before it got too late.”

“Too late…”

“As in the time of day, Deku. You’re overthinking.” Todoroki said quickly. 

“Oh, right.” Midoriya agreed. “Well, let’s head on over there, you can digest your food on the way.” he said, changing the mood of the conversation.

Todoroki yawned, but agreed. They both then got up from the table and prepared to meet up with Uraraka and Iida again, with Todoroki’s guards trailing behind them quietly.

-

“Good morning, Todoroki!” Uraraka greeted him, running over to the both of them. “Glad you could make it, we were worried about you, some more than others,” she shot a quick glance at Midoriya, “ since you had been asleep for quite some time. Do you feel better now?”

Todoroki gave her a very small, but visible smile. Her concern felt good, almost motherly-like. Also, he hadn’t missed the subtle glance she gave to Midoriya. “I do now, thank you. Truthfully if Deku hadn’t gone to get me, I’d still be asleep.” He explained. “I’m pleased to have such an attentive friend.”

Midoriya wasn’t sure if it was the million other voices in his head, or if someone had urged him to say it, but did Todorko just call him a… friend?

“F-friend?” Midoriya questioned, rapidly turning his head to look at him in the eyes.

Todoroki asserted with a nod. “Why, do you not think so?” He questioned. He was sure that his comment wouldn’t have been interpreted as an offense, so why did Midoriya seemed worked up about it? 

Midoriya began to scratch the back of his head. “Ah, n-no, I just… wanted to confirm if I had heard correctly, that’s all.” He sheepishly smiled. “I’m honored, really.” 

Uraraka was just silently watching all of this unfold. This sounded like a conversation that should’ve been going on between the two of them privately, somehow Midoriya had made it seem like it was a bigger deal than it really was. Although it _was_ sort of strange that Todoroki would consider him a friend since they’ve only known each other for a few days, not to mention, Todoroki is also a _prince_. Not even secret-prince Midoriya was capable of recognizing friendships with others so quickly. 

Anyways, seeing that Todoroki was so open to Midoriya and them seemed like a good thing rather than bad. “So will you two also be participating in a friendship-fated spar?” she asked them.

Thankfully, Midoriya was distracted by this and thanked Uraraka in his head. “Of course, when we first met, we both revealed that we liked to train and promised each other to spar one day. I didn’t think it’d come so soon though, I’m definitely a little rusty…” he admitted. If he really went at it with Todoroki, he’d certainly be sore for the rest of their journey, but that was a sacrifice he was willing to make.

“You don’t sound too sure of yourself,” Todoroki said with a slight smirk. “I’ve trained with many people of all levels in my free time, so I’ll try to _not_ hurt you.”

Midoriya recognized that Todoroki was a taunting him, something that he seemed to enjoy doing. He wouldn’t back down though, he already agreed to sacrifice his comfort for the rest of the trip to show Todoroki how he was up to par with him. Physically as a scholar, and mentally as a prince. “Oh no your highness, please give me your **all**.” He also flashed a smirk back.

Todoroki took this well. He wouldn’t have gone easy on Midoriya either way. The muscle tone he observed back at the baths were definitely inviting him to an advanced spar, and Midoriya’s current verbal invite almost made him shiver. He was actually really looking forward to this. 

Deep down, the prince wondered why. He wondered why he was suddenly excited to fight with Midoriya, and he wondered why he had even referred to Midoriya as a friend. He also questioned his desire to taunt Midoriya and see his reactions. For some reason, he yearned to see more and more of those reactions, and learn about other things like Midoriya’s motives. 

He felt this… strange and irrevocable connection to the green-haired scholar. Initially he attributed these feelings to be a by-product of his excitement to finally be out of his kingdom and explore Yuuei. He still suspects that that’s partly the reason, but he feels something else. He feels like there's an... unintellectual and unexplainable reason behind this attraction. 

Back at the castle, he has only a small number of relationships with others that he can call ‘friendships’, but enough so that he can identify what they are and consist of. Perhaps it was the way Midoriya was so jumpy and confused when they first met, an obvious indicator of him being phased by Todoroki for, presumably, his looks. This made Todoroki associate the good feeling of humor with the first time they met. Midoriya is also strangely open about discussing various things, displaying that he too feels comfortable in Todoroki’s presence, which is reassuring. Not to mention all of their meetings that have happened such a short time frame. 

Anyhow, Todoroki enjoys the feelings and emotions that are coming from all of this. Midoriya’s friends are also alluring in their own way, contributing even more to the warm environment. Despite all of the feelings associated with the complete opposite of happiness that inhabit his mind and memories, Todoroki currently felt... contempt. 

Is... there a possibility of wanting more?

“Well you two will have to wait because I cannot **wait** to win against this brick-legged sir.” Sato suddenly chimed in, wielding his sword while it was still in its case and pointing it in Iida’s direction. 

Todoroki was brought back down from his cloud of overloading thoughts and blinked blankly a few times before registering what Sato had said. “Oh, that’s fine.” was all he said.

“Hmm… so who will I fight?” Uraraka asked, pouting. Midoriya had Todoroki, and Iida had Sato, leaving her with… one of the soldiers maybe.

And she was right. A few soldiers who were wandering around them suddenly started to call out “Me!” and rushed over. Ironically Uraraka’s quirk was zero-gravity, but right now she _was_ the gravity with all these young men rushing at her. Handsome, too.

She was worried that they’d try to go easy on her, but Sato made sure to get rid of those intentions. 

“Uraraka’s not to be messed with,” he announced to them. “Among all the women, she’s the most feared at the castle, or so I’ve heard. Even amongst some of their guards.”

Uraraka beamed and smiled, appreciating Sato’s warning. She truly was strong though. Even though she had only received short lessons every now and then from Midoriya and Iida, they _were_ lessons from the two possibly strongest fighters _with_ experience from their castle. 

“Oh man, I totally forgot about her quirk,” one of the soldiers mentioned.

Ohhhhhh man indeed. Since Todoroki had tagged along, Midoriya and them had made sure to not reveal that either of them had quirks, for the sake of not giving clues about Midoriya’s true status. A lowly scholar would definitely not be traveling with people that have quirks that are capable of protecting him. Still, Midoriya had hoped that Todoroki might’ve missed this… but…

When Midoriya looked over at him, Todoroki was just picking at one of his nail beds, unbothered. 

“Clean sparing only, nothing fancy and no cheating.” Sato announced again, intensely staring down the soldier that had let their secret out. The soldier looked blankly at Sato, not getting the hint, but then glanced at Todoroki and his eyes widened. 

Iida cleared his throat loudly, successfully getting everyone’s attention. “Let’s start getting warmed up, we only got one night to enjoy together.”

“Yessir!” most of the guards responded. 

Midoriya nodded enthusiastically. If there was one person who could always keep things, it was Iida. He was the captain of the guards in the castle after all, he really resembled some school representative with his charisma, even if it was too doting sometimes. 

-

The time was now eight-fifteen, and a crowd consisting of Uraraka, Midoriya, Todoroki, and several guards stood watching Iida and Sato getting into their sparring stances. Sato started to tuck his let elbow into his side, sticking the lower half of his arm out meanwhile his right arm was out and extended, holding his sword with it tightly. His legs were also spread about shoulder width apart, with his right side leading forward.

Iida meanwhile went for a more traditional pose, standing at also shoulder-width apart but not leading with either side. His sword was gripped with both hands and stood tall in front of him, leaning forward only slightly.

Both men adorned serious complexions, focused solely on one another, and waited for the start of the match to be called.

“Whether it be for honor or sport, fight and make your kingdom proud!” Uraraka yelled, signaling the beginning of the fight.

The next few seconds consisted of furious sounds made by the connection of both men’s swords. They slashed at each other mercilessly, barely escaping one another by fractions of seconds. Iida was more forward with his moves, always initiating the dance they’d participate in while trying to get away from one another. Sato did seem to have more strength when it came to actually swinging the sword though, sometimes stopping halfway during a swing if he predicted it’d be blocked to rewind and swing again. 

But Iida, even without using his quirk, was quick to circle Sato and swing at his vulnerable spots. 

This dance went on for several minutes, both men seemingly exercising their unwavering stamina. Todoroki looked upon them, impressed with how quick each were to respond to each others slashes meanwhile setting up to counterattack. Their style reminded him of dancing, which was similar to the style of his personal guard, despite their sizes. He wondered if Midoriya would spar like this as well, but stopped his thoughts and settled to discover that once they were fighting. Sato and Iida were based on tactless slashes in an attempt to beat the other in a stamina race, but Todoroki liked to think before executing his attacks, sneaking up on the opponent when they least expect it. He hoped Midoriya was as worthy as an opponent like Todoroki thought he’d be.

Meanwhile, Midoriya was also enjoying the fight, but started fearing about the use of swords. Normally in practice, soldiers would use sticks that were shaped similar to swords to prevent an accidental, and fatal, accidents, but Sato and Iida were skilled enough to prevent that. Another way to explain would be in the scenario of a chess game. Sato and Iida knew when their ‘check’ moves were made, and watched out to avoid the ‘checkmate’. Midoriya was really more used to swinging a sword with no mercy and always resorting to ‘checkmate’, having encountered a fair amount of enemies in his lifetime. Unlike Iida, he wasn’t sure he was capable of stopping an accident before it happened. HIs reflexes were sharp no doubt, but the emphasis he put into his moves made him sluggish when he had to make sudden actions. He wanted to propose using the sticks, but he looked at Todoroki and saw his interest in Iida and Sato’s fight, attentively watching this attacks and probably thinking about how he would fight. Todoroki would definitely deny the sticks.

Suddenly, a clash louder than any previous ones rang in the room and into everyone’s ears. Midoriya had gotten distracted by looking at Todoroki, so he hadn’t seen the last move of the battle. When he turned back, all he saw was Iida leaning over Sato, who was down on one knee. The tip of Iida’s sword was touching the ground, which was presumably the cause of the loud clash. Sato meanwhile had both arms down and was barely holding his sword.

Iida had won.

“IIIDDDDAAAAAAAAA” Uraraka cheered, jumping up and down. The soldiers around began to applaud for him as well, congratulating his success. 

“Damn…. It….” Sato mumbled in a disappointed tone. Iida offered him a hand, and his look of disappointed went away quickly. “I seriously wonder what they’re teaching you back up in that castle,” he sighed, giving Iida a defeated smile and accepting his hand. 

“Only the finest for… King All Might.” Iida responded, patting Sato on his back. He would have rather said another thing, but they had a secret to keep for now. Still, when he looked at Midoriya, the boy looked exceptionally pleased. 

“I seriously thought you two were going to go for hours, judging by how well you kept reading each other,” Midoriya said, stepping up to also congratulate Iida with a fist bump. “I don’t know how Todoroki and I can follow that.”

But Todoroki did, so he added, “I bet we can,” soon after.

For some reason, the hair on the back of Midoriya’s neck stood up. The sounded really… intimidating. But rather than scared, he felt even more excited. “No doubt.” he said, agreeing.

“Woah, I can smell the bloodlust from here,” Uraraka said, fanning herself with her hand.

Iida finished waving off a soldier. “Wait for them to bring us some water and then you can start your ‘friendship-fated’ spar. I’m keeping close tabs on you, Deku.”

Midoriya chuckled. “Please don’t, I’ll feel self-conscious,” he joked. “I’ll be keeping close tabs on you too, Todoroki.” he said, mocking Iida.

“I’d hope you would.” Todoroki replied. 

A few minutes and glasses of water later, Midoriya and Todoroki stood in the fighting ring, anxious eyes watching over them and running over from one to the other repeatedly. Sato and the soldiers didn’t know, but Uraraka and Iida were actually dying to see this fight. They were interested to see how Prince Izuku would do in a duel against Prince Todoroki, a new prince versus a prince already brought up with pampering and anything he could wish for. If a book were to be written about the relationships of royals with one another, this moment in history would surely be one of the highlights in it. 

Midoriya took a stance similar to Iida’s, except his sword was lowered closer to the ground and his left arm was extended out and held slightly back. Todoroki chose a simple stance, standing straight on both legs with his right foot in front of his left, and his body tilted similarly. He held his sword with his right hand as well, and had it set up diagonally in front of him, suggesting that he planned to slash like that first. His left arm as slightly bent but kept at his side. 

“You sure?” Midoriya asked, returning a taunt. He knew that Todoroki was standing in such a vulnerable position for a reason though, and he couldn’t wait to see why.

Uraraka raised her hand and prepared to start the battle.

“More sure than when you realized you like me.”

...Midoriya froze completely, even stopped breathing.

“FOR HONOR OR PURE SPORT, MAKE YOUR KINGDOM PROUD!” Uraraka boasted.

Immediately Todoroki rushed forward, suddenly changing the position of the sword and holding it out diagonally. So the initial position was a farce, like Midoriya had briefly thought of.

Right now, though, his mind was blank and his cheeks were flushed. He had barely reacted to Todoroki slash, dodging it completely by ducking and rolling to his right, getting back on his feet immediately. He wasn’t fast enough, though, because Todoroki had already circled around behind him and was preparing to hit him on the neck with the handle of his sword. 

Midoriya ducked again, this time all the way down, and swung his right leg around while his left arm kept him propped up. Todoroki jumped back to avoid his leg and moved further back. “You looked surprised, what’s wrong?” he asked before rushing at him again.

Oh this was so not fair, out of all the tactics he thought Todoroki might use, **this** is what he was going with. If Midoriya kept responding sensitively to it, Todoroki would think he said something true, which _obviously_ wasn’t the case, right?

This time Todoroki held the sword with boths hands and swung from the right, but Midoriya was focused and centered again by the time Todoroki made it over. He blocked the attack, causing the swords to ring loudly. Todoroki’s swing had so much force that the vibration from the swords hitting each other ran up into Midoriya’s arms, stinging a little.

Before he knew it, Todoroki was ducking to swing from the bottom. Midoriya reacted fast enough to jump to his left and rolled to get farther away. When he was crouched on his feet, he turned back to register Todoroki’s position, but Todoroki was almost at his location. Midoriya could’ve simply dodged and ran, but he thought of another way to buy himself some time to think. When Todoroki raised his sword and brought it down, Midoriya’s position his sword so that they’d met and form an x. This was a move usually reserved for the ending of a battle, deciding the winner based on who could hold out the other the longest, but Midoriya counted on his secret brute strength to hold out as much as he needed. The two were now facing each other.

“You’re… fast.” Midoriya breathed out.

“Satisfying, isn’t it?” Todoroki responded, focused on winning.

Midoriya smiled. “The faster you are, the faster you’ll get worn out.”

“... Guess we’ll find out,” Todoroki said quickly, pulling away from Midoriya and stumbling back. 

Iida stared at them in disbelief and leaned over to whisper to Uraraka. “Even in combat, they find a way to talk to each other…”. Uraraka responded with a light laugh.

_Now_ Midoriya was ready. In those few seconds, he figured out that Todoroki’s method was most likely to constantly keep Midoriya on edge, making himself lose stamina but focused on distracting Midoriya and keeping him from coming up with plans of attack. 

So far, Midoriya was purely on the defensive, but he wasn’t tired in the slightest. He figured the best way to win would be to keep playing at Todoroki’s game, and take up his offer on ‘finding out’ about his stamina. 

So that’s how the fight went on for a few more minutes, Todoroki rushing and attacking meanwhile Midoriya blocked and counter attacked. Midoriya’s thighs were starting to strain a bit from all the crouching and ducking he had to do, but his power came more from his upper body anyways. 

Eventually they found themselves in the same position as before, with Midoriya blocking a straight slash from Todoroki with his sword held out diagonally to form the x again. This time, Midoriya was prepared to overpower Todoroki and cause him to stumble back further. There was an opening during that short second in which Todoroki was adjusting his footwork before, but Midoriya was too focused on planning how to dodge another attack if there was one. Now, he was ready to use that opportunity and gain an upper hand by switching to fighting offensively. 

He opened his mouth to retort before overpowering Todoroki, since he felt Todoroki start to pull away anyways, but a soldier suddenly came running into the room and began to announce something.

“Sato,” he called.

Sato met his gaze. “What is it?” he asked.

“It’s the king of Flamuralis, he has suddenly arrived.”

Todoroki and Midoriya heard ‘king’ and lost focus of one another for a quick second, but realized their mistakes and continued the battle. They were so close to finishing, they wouldn’t dare quit for anything now.

But half a second later, Endeavor walked into the room, followed by several guards. He analyzed the room quickly, finding Todoroki quickly.

“Shoto,” he called, his voice filling the entire room. 

Todoroki refused to answer though, and pushed harder against Midoriya. Midoriya wouldn’t falter though, even if Todoroki was trying to prove some point in front of his father now. He was surprised that Endeavor suddenly showing up didn't faze him at all, but instead seemed to give him a push of power, probably due to anger.

“Stop this foolishness immediately, Shoto.” Endeavor called out again, walking towards both of them. 

Midoriya turned his head to see an obviously-irritated Endeavor walk up to them. He was expecting Todoroki to stop now, but he didn’t.

Suddenly Iida also stepped out from the crowd. “Stop now, Deku.” he said with a stern tone.

Deku was prepared to listen, but Todoroki was pushing harder and harder. Even if he had tried to redirect Todoroki’s sword, he couldn’t move out of the way without the sword or himself hitting Endeavor. Did he seriously have to choose between those two crappy options right now?

“Todoroki....” he croaked in a final attempt to get him to stop. Much to his surprise, this did make Todoroki yield. Once sufficient force was removed on Todoroki’s behalf, Midoriya was able to pull his sword and jump back. When he looked at his opponent, he saw that Todoroki looked rather… sad. 

“Your rebellion only makes others suffer.” Endeavor told him, stepping back now. “I expected you to take advantage of this trip and research about Yuuei like you had suggested, but I see now that you only came to waste time with…” he glanced at Midoriya, “common-folk.”

Well, that stung a little, but at least Midoriya was noticed unlike last time. Endeavor wasn’t completely wrong anyways.

“Do you really plan to nag at me here and now? In front of an audience, like I assume you’d prefer?” Todoroki responded sharply, giving Endeavor a _seriously_ irritated face.

Endeavor just shook his head. “Already speaking like that in front of an audience.... And disobeying your king’s demands in another kingdom… you truly want to never return, do you?”

That warning completely changed Todoroki’s expression. Instead of irritation, it now showed a hint of concern. Endeavor knew he had won this small exchange of words. “We are leaving tonight, right now.”

Now everyone was staring at Todoroki. To Midoriya, it was painful seeing him get degraded so quickly and easily. But Endeavor was a king after all, technically Todoroki nor any of them had the authority to speak over him at all, but that didn’t mean Midoriya secretly didn’t wish to. 

With that, Endeavor left the room, knowing Todoroki would obey him now. Once he had left the room, Todoroki sighed deeply. 

“Don’t worry about it.” Midoriya offered quickly. “Let’s call it a tie.”

Todoroki just nodded once, keeping his eyes glued on his sword. 

Seeing Todoroki like this _physically_ made Midoriya hurt. He looked so defeated, so sad. How could Midoriya not feel pity after this? But as a prince himself, he knew Todoroki had no other option but to obey and leave at that moment. It wasn't his fault in the slightest, and Midoriya wanted to make sure he got that through to him.

He brushed Todoroki’s hand to get his attention. “We’ll meet again because of fate, right?”

This distracted Todoroki from whatever dark thoughts were consuming his mind, and he looked up at Midoriya. He understood the words. “Yes.” He then turned to Iida and Sato. “I apologize for this inconvenience, please forgive my rudeness and foolishness.”

Iida and Sato responded by bowing first. “It is our fault for not having known about his route to here earlier. It is a grave mistake on our part, please do not burden yourself with any guilt regarding this situation.” Sato pardoned him.

“We’ll walk you out.” Uraraka said, walking towards Todoroki and Midoriya, but before they could start walking, some of Endeavors guards that were left behind interrupted them. “We will escort him from here.” 

How much worse did the situation need to get? But again, they had no choice but to obey. “Very well.” Midoriya suddenly spoke. But before he’d surrender his friend over to what seemed like his doom, he grabbed Todoroki’s arm. “I know you told me not to worry about you, but can I also make a request, your highness?”

“Depends on what it is.” Todoroki responded. He’d really say yes to anything coming from Midoriya though.

“Don’t _make_ me worry.” 

Todoroki smiled weakly. “I won’t.”

It didn’t really sound like a promise, sounded more like a ‘okay mom’ but Midoriya was willing to take that over nothing.

With that short exchange, Todoroki waved to Uraraka, Sato, and Iida and then began to walk out behind the guards.

And like that, Midoriya was left to think about the million things that demanded his attention in his head.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I apologize for only rolling out two chapter these past two weeks, I've been brainstorming like crazy for the plot and everything that happens before/after and BOY are you in for a ride
> 
> did yall enjoy those little sparring scenes? did I explain them in a way that kinda made sense? 
> 
> See you next time, PLUS ULTRAAAAA


	10. Kindled

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Midoriya and co. continue their spars into the late hours of the night. They decided to finish off their time together by celebrating with the company of some fine champagne, but Midoriya encounters something horrifying before the night could conclude.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> an update on monday woahh?
> 
> Welcome back everyone!  
> Ooh man, did I enjoy the last bit of this chapter.  
> I figured that i'm probably taking a lil too long with this trip of them outside the castle, so time skips and come soon and this chapter sets that up.  
> tbh i felt like i was writing some creepy pasta lol...
> 
> anyways enjoy!

After Todoroki had left the room and everyone observed Endeavors carriage disappear into the distance from the rooms’ window, a semi-awkward vibe lingered in the air. 

There was Uraraka, who was sad to see Todoroki go so early because she enjoyed getting little hints about his personality from his actions and little words, but mostly because nobody would probably want to fight her due to their dampened moods.

Then there was Sato, who was disappointed that Endeavor had surprised him and the rest of the base with his arrival. Here he was, proud and excited to inform Midoriya about the successful communication pathways they’ve created and tested, yet they failed to discover and prepare themselves for an unexpected visitor.

Iida was mainly worried about Midoriya.

And Midoriya… well, he had a lot of things to think about for the next few days. For now, he didn’t want to let the current situation hinder their spirits too much. “Uraraka, wanna go next?” He asked, surprising everyone with how quickly he got over Todoroki’s absence. He thought it made sense though. After all, he had lived without Todoroki for 16 years, not seeing him for a few weeks or months shouldn’t be bad.

“Uhh,sure,” she responded, “If anyone still dares to battle against me.” She added, trying to break the awkwardness along with Midoriya.

It didn’t take long for her to find a partner, and both him and Uraraka agreed to use wooden sticks. Midoriya was the one to start the fight now, and tried to repeat her words as enthusiastically and she did. 

Iida also added something though. “Make us proud!!!” he yelled once Midoriya had finished. Truly though, he was excited to see Uraraka put her skills to use against someone from outside the castle. He was ready to see what she was capable of, in case a situation would arise that required her to. 

Once the match started, it was Uraraka who rushed in first, mimicking many of Iida’s offensive moves. But she also incorporated a lot of dodges and counterattacks like Midoriya to make up for her lack of experience. What made her style unique though was that she increased the force in her attacks by tucking in various body parts, such as her elbows and wrists. She also swung her body along with her movements, which compromised her stability after an attack but had Midoriya’s dodging abilities to protect that weakness. 

Unlike the previous duels, hers did take the longest out of all of them. Midoriya and Todoroki’s would have probably gone on for way longer too, but you know. Still, by the time she had finally knocked her opponent off of his feet, an impressive thirteen minutes of pure action had passed by. The room roared with applause once it had ended, and they warmly congratulated her. 

“Geez, Sato really wasn’t kidding,” one soldier said. “Training with you would definitely help our endurance, if you ever find yourself on a vacation again, please come back to us.”

Uraraka chuckled. “I’d be honored to, but I doubt these two would let me go so easily,” she responded, gesturing at Midoriya and Iida with her head. It wasn’t really intentional, but all the work assigned to her, profession and personal, by Midoriya and Iida had her plenty busy back at the castle. “But I won’t be going cold anytime soon thanks to them too.” She added. It seemed proper to give credit where it was due. 

“That really was extraordinary, Uraraka.” Midoriya praised her, walking over and giving her a fist bump. “I didn’t think you’d be able to merge Iida’s and mines styles together, but you did so flawlessly.” 

“Exactly,” Iida agreed. “I won’t be as worried when we send you off on own now. Actually, I fear for those who dare cross paths with you.” 

Uraraka laughed and appreciated these comments. “Thanks you guys, but we’re not done yet right? There’s still some interesting matchups to be made…” she trailed off, putting a finger on her chin and exchanging glances between Sato, Iida, and Midoriya. 

“Ah… you’re right.” Sato replied. “The night is still fairly young, who should go next?” 

-

The fourth battle ended up being between Iida and Midoriya, which wasn’t much of an interesting fight because both were so used to practicing against each other. They knew each other's style inside and out. It dragged on for quite awhile, until Midoriya surrendered due to his lack of endurance. 

“Ugh… I thought I really had this one,” he grumbled, accepting Iida’s hand and being propped up. “You’re too good… it’s scary…”

Iida chuckled. “Just years of pure training in every aspect of this sport, taught and guided by the best,” he boasted.

Midoriya looked at him with uncertainty. “I’m not sure I want such a scary man by my side…”

Iida got flustered. “Mi-Midoriya!” 

Uraraka and Midoriya burst out laughing. Iida had accidently used Midoriya’s name, but then realized that it way okay since their guest had left. 

The next fight was between Uraraka and Sato, since he was the one who boasted about her ability to fight in the first place. It was a long match again, but Sato was victorious this time. Then it was Iida and two of the soldiers, since he wanted to show off that he could also fight against multiple enemies. 

The night continued on like that, each of the four taking turns with each other and occasionally with some of the soldiers who took them on. Nobody had complained about fatigue until it was one in the morning, a handful of hours later. They were pretty excited, after all. Their desire to practice and train had finally been fulfilled.

Most of the soldiers had already excused themselves and retired to their quarters, leaving only a few to listen to Sato dismiss everyone for the night. 

“All of you have shown tremendous courage and the satisfying results of your training. Go now and rest to prepare for tomorrow’s activities. We will be seeing off our guests at ten in the morning if you wish to meet with them beforehand. That is all.”

“Yessir!” The quadrant of soldiers responded, bowing slightly forward before turning to exit the room. A couple had stayed behind to speak with our trio already before they left. 

“It was an honor to finally meet you, Midoriya.” one of them said, shaking Midoriya’s hand. “Now that I’ve also seen your physical abilities as well as your mental ones, I’m quite fearful of you now despite your kind appearance.”

Midoriya laughed lightly.”Thank you, comrade,” he responded, “That’s actually very pleasant to hear, I’m glad I have that effect.”

Several others commented the same, praising either his plans or his combat style. Needless to say, Midoriya felt _very_ pleased that night _._ And this was their impression of him without knowing he was their prince. Midoriya tried very often to avoid that type of thinking, but sometimes he couldn’t help it. He really was humble at heart, but knowing that one day he’ll instantly have the respect of many without having to prove himself sounded too good to be true. He wasn’t a fan of that empty respect though, he knew he’d still strive to earn it properly once that time would come. 

A couple of minutes later, only our trio and Sato remained in the room, unsure of what to do next.They certainly _were_ tired, but not _necessarily_ exhausted.

“Well, there’s a box of champagne that have been finely aging in my closet since I arrived here, and if I’m not mistaken, it looks like some of them have your names clearly written on them.” Sato smirked. 

Midoriya’s and Uraraka’s eyes instantly lit up, but Iida seemed a bit hesitant. “It’s already pretty late, we wouldn’t have much time to recover before traveling again.” He informed everyone. 

Uraraka groaned. “Ohh come on Iida. Our next destination is a couple of hours away, isn’t it? All we have to do it wake up on time and then continue sleeping it off.” she suggested. 

Midoriya supported her by nodding depthly. “No objections here.”

Iida pondered on for a second. Uraraka did have a point, the only consequence they’d have to deal with is getting up on time to board the carriage, and it’s not like they were on some strict schedule. This whole trip was dedicated to Midoriya after all, so he should be able to choose where to be and what to do. He had made his decision promptly.

“I suppose.” He announced, smirking at Sato. “Don’t get mad when you see how much we’re capable of drinking.” Sato just responded by snorting.

Uraraka jumped up with joy. “Another night of celebration!” she exclaimed, jumping over to Midoriya and circling him. “Mei will be missing out.”

Midoriya smiled at her. “Yeah, we owe one to her when we get back, but Sato is here with us instead.” He reassured her. 

“Well then, let’s get to work, shall we?” Sato asked, gesturing at the door. Promptly, our trio followed him out of the room and they prepared to begin their night of shenanigans. 

-

The room Sato told them to meet in was a fairly large one, though all the nice furniture and decorations made it feel comfortable anyways. It had two large windows that showed a view of the mountain they were on, as well as the forest that seemed extended for miles and miles. The room also featured a large sky light in its ceiling, much like Midoriya’s. 

Midoriya noticed this first, and took in the scenery that was being offered by the windows. Since it was so late at night, it seemed to be ultra silent outside. No wind was bothering the trees, and no animals were out searching for prey or a place to stay. When he walked further into the room, he noticed two couches parallel to each other and a short table in the middle. One of the couches already had somebody sitting in them. 

“Midoriya, you didn’t bathe?” Uraraka asked, getting more comfortable in her seat and noticing how his hair lacked cleanliness.

“No… it’d set us back too much.” He replied calmly, walking over to sit next to her. “Besides, I can bathe once we get to the next village.” Midoriya wasn’t bothered by a bit of dry sweat on him. Back when he was exploring the kingdom, he’d even last several days without bathing, which wasn’t really noticed because his group would also be in the same manner. Not every village had an inn, and asking villagers to borrow their buckets of water was too rude. 

But even if he had skipped the bath to save them time, it seemed that Iida and Sato didn’t think the same. 

“Actually, I probably should’ve because I think Iida and Sato went anyways…” he began to say, but two shadows started to appear from the hallway outside the door.

“Nah, we understand that we’re on a time crunch too.” Sato responded as one of the shadows, stepping into the rooms light and revealing himself and Iida. In his hands was a fairly large crate that looked like it weighed a little too much for him. 

Midoriya was about to get up to help him, but Iida was already taking the crate from Sato and walked over to set it on the table. 

“Well, this is it.” Sato announced, removing the top of the crate and revealing an array of champagne bottles nestled amongst each other. “What I believe to be the finest truth potions you will ever drink.” He explained, taking out a large bottle and swiping his hand over it repeatedly.

“Is that champagne, or a possible spouse?” Midoriya joked, mocking the way Sato was caressing the bottle with his own hands. 

“Oh sure, because _you’d_ surely know about something like that when you’d see it.” Sato sarcastically replied, taking a seat across from him. 

Uraraka and Iida also reached into the crate and pulled out a bottle to observe it, reading over its information.

“From… Calabasas???” Uraraka questioned, bringing the bottle closer to her eyes before glancing at Sato.

He just nodded from the couch across from her, and she sat back in her seat. “That kingdom has an exceptional taste in many things, one of them being champagne.” He explained, starting to set up cups for all of them. He aligned them and then opened a bottle, letting the knob pop off and land in the corner of the room. A soft mist immediately arose from the mouth of the bottle, and then Sato began to pour it into the cups. 

“How did you even get this? From what I know, we don’t have much communication or interaction with them at all…” Midoriya asked with some amazement in his tone. Calabasas was one of the kingdoms that resided far, far away from Yuuei. Since there was so much distance between the two kingdoms, both have decided that it’s useless to have any relations with one another, whether bad or good. When All Might was at the height of his popularity, they did extend a few respectful and congratulation messages, but none that hinted they wanted to build relations with Yuuei. So far, they were simply known as a rich kingdom with an eye for all things beauty and luxurious due to having substantial metal and mineral resources. Midoriya wondered if one day he’d ever have to respond to a request or threat from them when he’d become king. 

“I know a few folks from my village that travel there occasionally to trade our metals with theirs, for jewelry-oriented purposes. They know I have a thing for cuisine and peculiar tastes, so they gave these to me when I enlisted in the castle’s service.” Sato explained. “Actually, Midoriya, they have a few reports about that kingdom of you’re interested in look at them. They’re not exactly… open to the public but I know you love to fill that head of yours with anything.” 

Iida looked puzzled. “They refuse to give their information to the castle?” 

Sato shook his head. “They don’t ‘refuse’ to, technically. It’s just no one has asked, so they keep it to themselves.” 

Midoriya continued looking amazed. “These people from your hometown, they just come and go as they please?” He asked, accepting a cup of the champagne that was offered to him. 

“Yes, they’ve been doing so for as long as I’ve known them for. I’ll give you a map to their village before you leave.”

“Thank you.” Replied Midoriya.

Once they all had their cups of champagne, Uraraka lifted hers into the air and prompted the others to do the same. 

“Cheers to a successful day of training and practice with our dear friends at this base, as well as an eventful run-in with Endeavor!” She exclaimed.

The others were confused for a second, but figured she was joking and said their rounds of cheers as well. They all began to take sips from their cups, and all but Sato gasped when the sweet toxic juice had finished running down their throats.

“Dear lord…” Midoriya breathed, rubbing his mouth with his arm and observing the cup. “There certainly isn’t… any legal limit of alcohol in these isn’t there?”

Sato finished his **entire** cup before responding to Midoriya. “Nope,” was all he said.

To explain the taste of the champagne, it was as sweet as a wine with the absence of the grape tone, and instead encompassed a fizzy flavor that intertwined perfectly with the volume of alcohol in it. It was mesmerizing, almost made it seem like they were drinking some liquid form of gold. This was undoubtedly from a kingdom like Calabasas. 

The room was pretty quiet as they all accepted this amazing king of champagne and finished their first cup of it. Sato finished pouring them another round and began to caress the bottle again. “Only the finest for myself and my dear friends.” Oh, this time he even kissed the bottle. Was the drink already taking its effect?

“There you go again with that ridiculous display of affection.” Midoriya laughed, drinking half of his cup. He wondered if he should be responsible and drink moderately, or go all out and punish himself later for it. He also wondered how much of this stuff it would take to get to that second option. 

“Oh Midoriya, you could never affection like I do with this perfect specimen, even if you studied about it for years and years.” Sato teased, putting the bottle in his lap. “Is he still as rigid as he was before?” He asked Iida, looking over at him. Iida remained silent and took a quiet sip from his glass.

“I-Iida!” Midoriya exclaimed. He turned to Sato next. “Obviously I can… and I will…” He explained sheepishly.

Truthfully, he was rigid. Extremely rigid when it came to stuff like affection and attraction. Prior to meeting Todoroki, his mind never really experienced or focused on feelings having to do with those two things. All his life, he had only focused on one thing, and that was becoming an important and influential hero to those around him, which was actually becoming true. But once he does become king, or rather once he is officially recognized as a prince, he’d have to take on a spouse eventually, whether it be because of his personal feelings or because it would strengthen the relation with another kingdom. This wasn’t an uncommon practice, many royal families had gifted spouses to each other in hopes of mending or building relations with one another. Actually, the only exception to this practice was All Might, who focused his entire life on his people and kingdom and was rendered to busy for a spouse. The public and neighboring kingdoms were fine with it, but would they have the same attitude towards Midoriya? 

Either way, Sato was doing a good job as reminding him about those problematic situations, and, indirectly, so was Todoroki. 

“What, have you finally taken an interest in someone?” Sato asked. Whether it was the champagne talking, the authoritarian or fatherly side of himself, these questions were flustering Midoriya and making him face some realities he hadn’t been ready to think about yet. But still, he didn’t want to let himself be teased so easily.

“Of course. That’s what happens with age, right?” He responded. He chose to portray that he wasn’t only getting skilled intellectually, but personally as well.

“Iida doesn’t count.” Sato deadpanned. 

Midoriya spit out a little of the champagne that he was drinking. He wiped his mouth with his handkerchief before retorting. “Obviously!” He exclaimed.

Iida was remaining fairly quiet during the start of the conversation, but finally decided to weigh in with a comment. “Whether it’s me or not, I wouldn’t know. Midoriya doesn’t trust his feelings to a scary man like me.” After he had said this, a small hiccup escaped his mouth. The champagne was certainly loosening them up way faster than usual. This was probably also due to the fatigued state their bodies were already in.

Midoriya rolled his eyes at the already-tipsy Iida and began to defend himself again. “Dependless on who it is, that’s something for me, myself, and I to know and think about.” 

“Oh come on Midoriya, this conversation will most likely stay here long after you finally come to your senses about it. I don’t have much interaction with relationships and alike here, I’d like to experience those love-y affections from someone else at least.” Sato explained. He was onto his fourth cup. 

Midoriya was about to speak up again when Uraraka interrupted him first. “Well, you can say they’re certainly from _a_ castle.” She spoke proudly. She was sure her hint wasn’t anything that could be figured out, but the look from Midoriya suggested otherwise. 

“ _A_ castle? Not _the_ castle?” Sato asked. Was he really capable of realizing those hints in such a drunken state? That’s the captain of a base for ya. 

Midoriya was panicking in his head, and Uraraka continued to speak anyway. “Maybe… honestly I don’t know either,” she added, trying to act oblivious. So the champagne hadn’t completely taken over in her yet. 

Sato looked at Midoriya to accidentally give out more hints, but Midoriya just avoided his gaze and continued to take small sips from his glass. He began to think to himself, and soon came up with another surprising suggestion. “That prince from Flamuralis… he mentioned something about you and him. ‘More than you like me’ or something like that, I remember.”

Alright, this nail was too close to the coffin. Midoriya immediately blushed and put his glass down, determined to avoid any more suspicions about her personal life. “That guy… I seriously don’t know where that came from… but he was going to have to choose a lot wiser words to shake me up.” He simply explained, grabbing his glass once again. “He also called me a friend earlier, I don’t get what kind of game he’s playing.” He sighed and took a sip from the glass. Todoroki probably wasn’t playing any games, and could genuinely be trying to establish a friendship with him, but it sounded too perfect. 

“Hmm… sounds like he is trying to play you. Guess he went with that because he knows it’s most peoples weakness.”

Weakness? That sounded interesting. “What do you mean?” Midoriya asked, leaning forward.

Sato shrugged. “You haven’t heard? He’s thought to be the most handsome heir by all the kingdoms, including Calabasas and those others. He’s very sought after, you probably haven’t heard much about it since he’s not of age yet and rarely leaves his castle.” He explained. “But yes, anyone who doesn’t live in his castle or kingdom get undeniably flustered when they see him. Heck, honestly I did too.” He admitted, hanging his head so low it almost reached his lap. “A very attractive prince… Midoriya, maybe he can help you in _that_ department as well.” Oh, classic drunk Sato. 

Midoriya didn’t look very amused. “What good what it do? You said I’d never learn anything about it anyways.” 

“Doesn’t hurt to try,” Iida suddenly chimed in. He was still on this third cup. Midoriya faced him quickly and scowled. 

“Come on you guys, you’re really underestimating him. Besides, it’s Todoroki who seems to tag along instead of Midoriya initiating anything, so he must have _something_ in him at least.” Uraraka added. So far, the was the one being the most rational, which still wasn’t very rational at all. 

“Uraraka is right!” Iida boasted, standing up from the couch. “Certainly that’s why we chose to stand alongside him as well, Midoriya is _already_ special. _That’s_ why we serve him!!” He raised an arm into the air. Uraraka followed his cue and also raised her arm enthusiastically. 

Midoriya just face-palmed himself. “Iida… thank you but that’s enough…” he said slowly. Truthfully though, he was glad to hear Iida’s honest opinions about him. 

Iida sat back down, quieted by his master. Sato just looked at them with amusement, and decided to change the flow of the conversation, sort of. 

“Sticks that he had to go early, huh? From the start I could tell it was going to be a great match.” 

Midoriya swirled the champagne around in his glass. “Yeah… I was extremely disappointed… but there was nothing we could’ve done about it. It was best that he obey his fathe- I mean, the king” He stopped swirling it and took a long drink, certainly Todoroki wouldn’t spare him for having referred to that man as his father. He thought back to the short duration of his fight. “To be honest, I still can’t guess who would have won.” 

Sato remained silent for a moment. “Me neither. Though your fight styles were different, they somehow seemed similar, as if they could work really well if you worked together.”

Ah, that made sense. “That sounds pretty accurate, he seemed pretty cocky about his stamina too.” Midoriya added. He himself was pretty proud about his own stamina. The reason why Iida and the others often referred to him as a masochist was because he enjoyed to push himself to the limit, even going so far as to destroying it if needed. One could argue he was sadistic rather than masochistic, but the latter just stuck with him. It was a dangerous way of thinking and living, but he figured in the end it’d be best and help him during an impossible situation if one ever arose. He wondered if Todoroki was the same. 

Across from him, Sato shrugged. “Guess we’ll have to wait and see. He’ll most likely attend that ball that’s going on next month. You can secretly ask him for a rematch,” he took a moment to laugh, “Though I’d be extra careful with that king. I had never ever seen a prince disobey and disrespect a king like that. I wasn’t even sure it was possible to do, much less impossible to get away with. I fear for that prince.”

Sato was right. Midoriya had promised not to worry about Todoroki, and asked Todoroki to not _make_ him worry as well, so he hadn’t given much thought to what might’ve happened between Endeavor and him once they left. Now that Sato was reminding him, fearful predictions popped into his head, one after another.

But he quickly waved them away once that brilliant smile beamed at him again. Todoroki was strong. 

“Yeah, I’ll have Iida watch our backs when the time comes,” Midoriya said, looking down at the glass that was in his hands. It was empty, but he didn’t feel like refilling it anymore. Some very pleasant memories were comforting him, and he didn’t want them to go away. Soon enough, new ones will be made and then he can remember and appreciate those as well. The royal ball was just a little over three weeks away, surely he’d be so busy that the day would arrive quicker than expected. 

Even if Endeavor had threatened that they wouldn’t attend, it was most likely an empty threat. Although it seemed that he felt jealous of All Might, he wouldn’t dare rebuke their neutral relationship by refusing to attend a ball. All Might probably depended on this type of thinking too.

He looked over at Iida to see if his trusted attendant had heard what he had said, but it didn’t seem like it. Iida was dozing off, having rested his head on the arm of the couch. Uraraka’s eyes were also drooping. Somehow, their uninterest in his conversation made him feel a little betrayed. But he himself was also feeling some exhaustion set in. The four had already gone through several bottles of champagne, it was best to leave the rest for some of Sato’s future guests. So he placed his glass on the table and sat back into the couch, letting his head rest on the top of the couch.

Suddenly the reality of how much they had been drinking became apparent. He even felt like he couldn't even formulate sentences though somehow, it was peaceful. “Sorry Sato, I think I might stay right here, just like this.” he announced, starting to feel dark waves crashing over his thoughts. 

“Alright.” was all he heard Sato say, before giving up his consciousness and letting those dark waves settle across his mind.

-

“Midoriyaaaa.”

The tone of a soft voice was flowing into his ears, arousing the synaptic clefts in his nerves and beginning to make them fire off. Whether it was day or night was unknown. He wasn’t ready to open his eyes, but he made it known that he was starting to awaken. “Mmm,” he groaned back to the voice.

“Midoriiiyaaaa,” it called out again, this time getting a bit louder before it gradually faded into a hum. Now that his mind was a bit more cleared up and attentive, he guessed it was Uraraka trying to wake him up. He knew he had to be somewhere soon, but he simply couldn’t bring himself to remember where or for what. He did, however, convince himself to gather enough energy and begin to flutter his eyes. Eventually, he was able to keep one open, and began to register what was going on around him.

He had been expected to be greeted by Uraraka’s face, but she was nowhere to be seen. It was odd, because he had sworn that he had been hearing someone call out his name. Confused now, he moved his eyes around the room, looking for whatever could’ve been the source of that soft voice. To much more confusion, he realized that the room looked completely empty, his friends even being absent. It was strange because he recognized the room as the one they had all fallen asleep in. 

He wasn’t completely conscious yet, still feeling the absence of the rest of his body, but he urgently wanted to get up and investigate now. He was still hazy, but he understood that he either might be in some sort of lucid dream, or was left in the room by himself at some point in the night. Unfortunately, he was still only capable of moving his eyes.

An eerie silence continued for a seconds, but eventually another noise was heard, this time coming from one of the corner of the room. His eyes dashed to the spot, and suddenly it seemed like he could make out some dark figure standing at it. This was beginning to get creepy, but at least it wasn’t-

“Mido...riya…” 

… Nevermind, it _did_ talk. He wanted to question it already, to ask who it was, why it was there, and what it wanted, but those questions just bounced around and repeated themselves in his head, leaving the room in silence as it was originally. It was now that fear also started to invade his thoughts, spreading slowly and thoroughly until it became the feeling most imminent in him. Whatever it was or what he wanted, Midoriya just prayed that his body would wake up sooner of later, even if it was just an arm or a leg. 

His body would respond to his wishes though, and he continued on motionless as his eyes continued to dart around the room. Eventually he heard some cracking noise, and returned his attention back to the figure. For the love of Yuuei, please have Iida or Uraraka come and rescue him before he loses his mind. 

“Why…” it suddenly croaked, seemingly becoming larger and larger. 

‘ _Why what_?’ Midoriya wanted to ask. He imagined that he’d be feeling anger and impatience now, but his consciousness wasn’t aroused enough to recognize that. Fear was still the only thing pumping through his veins. 

“Look.” It demanded, but Midoriya couldn’t see whatever it was referring to. The room was still fairly dark, the brightness of the moon being the only source of light that was pouring into the room. Instantaneously, something brighter than the moonlight began to illuminate the decorative patterns on the walls and floor. It was stunning, but Midoriya could still stare at the source of it, which continued to be the figure that’s been there from the beginning. 

The flames seemed to engulf all the air around him, and for a moment Midoriya actually feared that he might suffocate from the lack of oxygen. But before that seemingly realistic reality could happen, the flames got closer and closer, bringing the figure along with it. 

It was only a few feet away from Midoriya now, and then the panic had set in. 

‘ _I’m going to die, I’m going to die_ ’ was all that was running through him now. His body was still unresponsive, and his eyes were solely focused on the flames that, despite their proximity, had no effect on the temperature of the room.

Still, the resemblance it had to actual fire was terrifying to the point where he felt an odd peace start to calm his nerves,which was probably the reality of him dying setting in and telling him to stop fighting it for nothing. It also felt like an extremely heavy weight had been placed upon his chest, and he had no option of trying to move it. 

The suffocation was getting worse, and it felt like he had been struggling for hours. When he tried to groan or hum again to see if he could work up a voice to call for help, he found out that he couldn’t even do that anymore.

The fire got larger and closer, and the figure began to change in the midst of it. “It hurts….. it hurts…” it groaned. Suddenly the flames danced around the entire room now instead of staying posted on the figure. What Midoriya saw was left truly horrified him enough to wish this thing would already do what it wanted to him. 

It resembled a person, some sort of twisted, beaten, and battered human that had skin drooping and falling off of it like melting plastic. It was crying, and moaning, and pleading for its life. All of the sounds from it sounded so tortured, so fearful, that in midst of his fear, Midoriya felt pity for it. Deep pity. 

Instead of ‘ _I’m going to die_ ’, he couldn’t help but think ‘ _How could I help?_ ’, but those thoughts were as useless as the lack of his voice. 

“You can’t.” It said. So it seems to have heard his inaudible pleas. 

“I can.” Midoriya squeaked. It was barely audible, but it was there. His voice was waking up, and that’s all Midoriya needed to reach this thing and… help.

“I can” He said again, a bit louder now. If his voice was working, then that meant it would only take a handful amount of time for the rest of his body to awaken as well. 

“You can’t,” it cried, wailing so loudly that Midoriya was sure it could have been heard throughout the castle. 

“Let me,” he mumbled. Unfortunately, his body was still taking its time, and the strength that he found in his voice was rendered useless when the weight on his chest soon left him breathless. 

“I need...”

“I need...”

Midoriya’s body could sustain no more. His fight was over. His strength and consciousness had left him once again. Before he left, the figure pounced on him, and wrapped what seemed like its hand around his neck. 

Wails were what Midoriya last heard, followed by a complete and peaceful silence, but another thing as well. 

“You.” 

———-

Several days later, Todoroki woke up **screaming.**

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> yes! its a cliffhanger!
> 
> im not a fan of them but hopefully it will get yall questioning... wtf is going on
> 
> promise promise a lot will be cleared up next chapter, which honestly might come tomorrow if I continue feeling so motivated
> 
> see you next time, PLUS ULTRA!! (enjoy spooky szn!)


	11. Ignition

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> We get to drop in and see what Todoroki and All Might are up to, meanwhile Midoriya faces his apparent night terror.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> happy post-halloween!!   
> shortish chapter today due to my complicated story-planning   
> summary of whats happened in the ending notes!  
> with that, enjoy!

\--------

***A few hours earlier, following the departure of Endeavor and Todoroki***

\--------

For the majority of the carriage ride through Yuuei on their way to the Grasslands, Todoroki and Endeavor remained silent. It was the early hours of the morning now and daylight still seemed to be a few hours away. Endeavor at least had some documents to read and sort to keep himself entertained, but Todoroki sat pretty motionless, keeping on a blank expression whilst looking out the window. He wasn’t able to fall asleep, partially because of his slumber back at the base, and also because he didn’t trust showing his weak, sleeping state to Endeavor. Besides, he truly was disappointed in that moment, and such disappointment seemingly ate up his energy and prevented him from taunting and bickering against Endeavor as well. 

He wondered if Midoriya and them continued their night like normal as planned, without him. Surely Midoriya felt a fair share of disappointment as well, and still had plenty of energy before they were interrupted, so Todoroki also wondered who he ended up sparring against.

Well, whether they continued or not and what they did, it was best not to think about it too much. He’d only get attached quicker, and to himself, that meant having a visible weakness that could be targeted and used against him. One of his greatest fears.

Still, he couldn’t help but miss at least _one_ of them.

Suddenly, Endeavor organized his papers loudly and began to enclose them in a folder. “I didn’t know you had such an interest in commoners,” he spoke, laying the folder on the empty space besides him. “I thought you’d take advantage of visiting Yuuei for the first time, but I see that I was mistaken to think as such”

There it was, a familiar taunt that provoked Todoroki to respond emotionally. In two swift sentences, Endeavor had managed to insult him and his new batch of companions. But again, Todoroki didn’t have the energy to come up with his usual retorts. 

“They’re not commoners,” he simply offered, keeping the same posture and not sparing even a glance at Endeavor.

“They’re not?” Endeavor asked, folding his arms on his chest. 

Todoroki sighed. “How bad is your vision? They were the same group from the castle.” Todoroki explained. He hated to point this out, but he was determined to at least defend them from being called useless. 

“Ah… the ones who hid you from your duties? I’d assume my heir would enjoy the company of people who are more… up to our caliber. Though I suppose it’s not entirely your fault, it seems that that castle itself was crawling with commoners and insignificant people.”

Alright, this had riled up Todoroki a bit more. He couldn’t resist snapping a sharp glance at Endeavor. “You know nothing of this country, yet you pass such judgement? An ignorant king is equally insignificant,” he spoke. Luckily his fists hadn’t clenched, and his expression remained calm. It was difficult to resist such emotional behavior, but the satisfaction Todoroki got from reminding Endeavor that he had no power over his emotions was rewarding. He had also succeeded in bothering Endeavor as well, because the look on his face was no longer neutral.

“I don’t doubt this country, not in the slightest, which is why **we** must surpass it and their king, All Might. And I believe that reality can only become true with you, which is why you are the heir. Don’t waste your beloved potential, that is why I created you.” Endeavor told him.

“Don’t bestow your empty wishes upon me,” Todoroki snapped back. “When you speak of surpassing this kingdom, it sounds like a threat. Have you lost your mind and have began preparing for some fruitless war?” he questioned. 

Endeavor calmly shook his head, and began to move in his seat. Todoroki instinctively flinched, which bloomed some pride in Endeavor. “Watch how you speak, Shoto. You still respond to me, don’t forget. Your pointless rebellion will bring about nothing, it’s best you give in to the path I’m trying to show you.” 

Todoroki scoffed. Endeavor would always bring up this discussion about guiding him through a ‘path’, but since his childhood, he had already sworn to deny his father’s ideology and become a king true to himself and his kingdom. Since meeting Midoriya and them, he thought it even more important to look into strengthening relations with other kingdoms, unlike Endeavors idea of becoming a supreme power to rule over others. 

Endeavor sighed in return. “You heard about the ball that's to take place here in a month, correct?”

The question was surprising. What was he planning to say if Todoroki said yes?

“I have.” Todoroki responded, curious to see where Endeavor would go with this. 

The carriage ride began to get bumpy, suggesting that they were now traveling through some rough terrain. Endeavor switched his attention from Todoroki to the scenery outside. It was nearly daylight now, and he was observing their surroundings and noting that they were approaching a familiar location. He smiled slightly, and returned his attention back to Todoroki. 

“If you plan to attend, I have a proposal for you.” He said, folding his hands and laying them in his lap. “Are you interested?”

“... Of course.” Todoroki replied. Figuring that it would be the next place he’d be able to interact with Midoriya, he’d listen to whatever the old man wanted to say.

“In order to attend it with _me_ , you have to train with me _everyday_. Your coming of age isn’t too far away, and you’re in a crucial development stage with your quirk right now. You have to obey me without question and refusal.”

This… was a heavy proposal. “Everyday…? I…”

“Everyday. No exceptions.” Endeavor interrupted him. “If you’re worried about how your body will be burdened physically, that is exactly why this training is needed. You need endurance, and teachings on how to manage your left side, _my_ side.” He began to gaze at Todoroki’s left side of his hair and smirked. “So? Will you accept?”

Todoroki looked down at his hands. Undoubtedly, his body would be completely destroyed for the next month, and he’d be giving in to the one desire of Endeavors that he swore to deny. His left side… the side of his body that could emit flames and fire like… Endeavor…

Most importantly, he’d be disgracing his mom. His dear mother, Rei, who attempted to protect Todoroki during the early stages of his life, and to this day continues to fight with Endeavor over how Todoroki was treated. Even though Rei showed no hostility towards him, deep down he knew that she feared his left side because of how much it reminded her of Endeavor. Could he really betray her like this? Betray himself?

The odds have obviously already been decided, but he found himself thinking about the consequences of not…

“I do.”

Endeavor crossed his arms and sat back, looking exceptionally pleased. “Glad you see things my way.”

‘I don’t.’ thought Todoroki.

“Well, we will begin immediately.”

The carriage suddenly halted, and Todoroki quickly looked outside to see where they had stopped. “You can’t be serious-”

“Here. Now.” Demanded Endeavor, exiting the carriage. 

Once Todoroki had also descended, he observed that they were in some abandoned village. The houses looked run down, and some had even looked like they had been attacked. They were definitely still in Yuuei. Was Endeavor really planning to practice in a place like this?

“Tch. Such a modern kingdom, yet they still have some abandoned villages,” he said, walking around to get a better look at all the houses. “This was the temporary base of those villains they caught a few months ago, All Might gave us the O.K. to torch it since the houses sustained too much damage to be habitable,” he continued explaining. “You _did_ read that briefing at least, didn’t you?”

Todoroki remembered which briefing, and nodded. 

“Alright. Change into your gear first, I’ll be waiting for you in the middle of the clearing.” 

Todoroki nodded and began to walk back to the carriage. He didn’t realize it, but he had given a desperate glance at the guards that were mounted on their horses and were waiting back at the carriage. They offered nothing in return, not even some words of encouragement. He sighed deeply and continued to look for his trunk to find his gear. ‘I’m sorry, mother.’ he thought, taking a moment to stare at his left hand before waving off his regrets and returning to his task.

-

“He’s still breathing at least, he’ll wake up eventually.”

“That doesn’t make me any less worried, Uraraka.”

Uraraka had just finished examining Midoriya for what seemed like the hundredth time. Iida grew more and more impatient with each examination, and was starting to worry excessively.

“What the hell was in that champagne, Sato?” he asked angrily, flashing an irritated look at Sato.

Sato was sitting on the opposite couch, his head hanging low and staring at his hands which were folded on top of his lap. “If it had been poisoned, I would’ve been affected too.” He stated. He was defending himself because the last bottle was split between only them, since Uraraka and Iida had already fallen asleep. “Listen to Uraraka, he probably just experienced a surreal dream. Didn’t he used to do that often in the past?”

Iida began to think. Midoriya _did_ have a history with bad dreams, but the boy had always avoided thinking too much about them and refused to give too many details about them. Besides, the last case of that was months ago, and even then Midoriya seemed to have gotten over it quickly. 

“I don’t recall they ever left him _comatose._ ” Iida responded. He focused his attention back on Midoriya, and instructed a soldier nearby to bring them some water.

“He’ll be fine, Iida. He wouldn’t give himself up this easily.” Uraraka offered, reaching over her empty hand to hold Iida’s.

He let her do so, but he still felt uneasy. ‘ _This time, I won’t let you deal with it alone_ ’ he thought.

-

Back at the castle, All Might was sitting in his throne room, signing documents after documents that were about approving plans and arrangements for the ball. Once he had gone through half of a stack, he stopped for a moment to sit back in his chair and rest. He wondered what Midoriya and them were up to, and how they had spent the last two days.It wasn’t rare for them to go days, and even weeks without seeing each other because of official business they had to conduct, but the absence of Midoriya’s presence was being felt. Hopefully the trip was going well, and Midoriya would successfully relax before returning and taking upon the pile of duties that were entrusted to him.

The ball.. Supplementary manner classes… the studies on Flamuralis _and_ some developmental quirk training… All Might thought that perhaps… it really was too much for Midoriya. But he quickly waived these thoughts away. Midoriya was of age now, the events in his life will only be picking up in speed now, and he has to learn this as quickly as possible. It’s only uphill from here, and All Might _believes_ in his heir. 

A knock at the door briefly interrupted his reflections. “Come in,” he said, fixing his posture and sitting back up in his chair. 

Ojiro walked into the room, closing the door behind him. He had a couple of letters in his hands. 

“One of the messengers from the Monte base had just arrived and dropped these off,” he said, walking over to hand over the letters he was holding. “One is from the base itself, and how Midoriya, Iida, and Uraraka arrived there safely last night, and this other one is a report on Endeavors arrival to the abandoned village.”

“Oh, they barely arrived there… today?” questioned All Might. They had left two mornings ago, so really they should’ve been there that following afternoon, but apparently that wasn’t the case.

“Their trip was elongated because of the rainfall in that area. They had also decided that their horses were too fatigued to travel again so soon. They stayed at an inn until last night, and arrived at the village this morning.” Ojiro explained.

All Might opened the letters while Ojiro was briefing their contents, and began to read them for himself. “I see…” he spoke, going over both reports. There wasn’t much information on Midoriya’s group, which was a bit disappointing. “Very well, has the court been notified yet?”

Ojiro nodded. “They were each sent a copy of the letters as well. There is no call to action, but still, it is important to know that Endeavor is still in our country, and how prince Midoriya’s trip is going.”

“Still in our country…” All Might trailed off. “That reminds me… Ojiro, has any more information about _them_ come through yet?”

“No sir,” Ojiro replied, shaking his head. “The bases are on high alert, but no suspicious activity has been noted yet. It seems that they’re still shaken by the raid that prince Midoriya conducted a few months back.”

All Might leaned forward in his seat and propped his forearms up with his elbows on the desk, folding his hands together in the air. “Somehow… I can’t stop asking myself whether that's a good or bad thing. Evil… always lurks around. Especially in silence.” He sighed deeply.

“ I agree with you, your highness.” Ojiro told him. “But I ask you not to worry about it too much. Our country is more than prepared to deal with whatever destruction they try to impose… and the ball will be an excellent opportunity to gather information and make more allies.”

All Might smiled. It seems that he’s being told to ‘not worry’ frequently now. Thought it was comforting to know that everyone shared his burdens, he knew it was impossible for him to not think about all the possibilities of a tragedy happening in their kingdom. The uneasiness growing inside of him reminded him about the phrase, ‘ _the calm before the storm’_. 

“I really hope you speak nothing but truth,” All Might responded.

Ojiro smiled. “Speaking truth _is_ my duty, after all. Second to easing your burdens in any way that I can. Would you like me to return with some cedar?”

All Might’s eyes brightened up. “If you could, please.”

Ojiro bowed. “Right away, your highness.” He excused himself and exited the room with the intention to return with plenty of cedar.

The king returned to sitting back in his chair, repeating ‘ _the calm before the storm_ ’ over and over again his head. He chuckled to himself a little when he realized he was doing something that Midriya often did as well while he was overthinking.

-

A slow, mindful inhale.

An equally slow, tranquil exhale.

Another calm, deep inhale, and another bountiful exhale.

This process of deep breaths went on for a few more cycles, and Midoriya eventually realized that they were of his own doing. It felt so… incredible to be feeling as relaxed as he was right then. The only task that occupied his mind was continuing the cycles of breaths, allowing his body to absorb as much oxygen from the air as it needed, and then rid itself of the gas that built up from the usage of his organs.

In this lax state of mind, nothing came up. Not the events that had happened the day before, nor the conversations he had with others, nor even what had happened a few hours to him earlier. Perhaps it was a bit dangerous to remain in such a relaxed state, but those consequences didn’t bother him in the slightest. It was as if the ‘thinking’ areas of his brain had been switched it off, and it was solely his instinctive bodily processes that were keeping him alive.

It felt good, so he let it continue for a little while longer. But in some distance that seemed far beyond where he was in his state of mind, he heard voices. In the instant he picked up that the voices belonged to a female and a male, a thought suddenly broke through the barrier that was placed between his mind and consciousness. The white and red haired fellow… Todoroki… He was important, right? What must he be up to?

Now the female and male voices were sounding closer, and the deep mindful cycles of breathing had slightly picked up their pace. In a few moments, each of Midoriya’s organ systems began to register under his consciousness, and eventually his muscles began to tense up and release as they were subconsciously tested. It was still a little too fast for Midoriya to completely wake up, so he lay there motionless until he worked up the energy to flutter his eyelids. 

“Mi...Midoriya?” a voice calmly called to him. He felt some light pressure on his hand, and responded to it by wiggling his fingers. His eyelids continued to flutter, and eventually he slowly halted them to open his eyes. 

His vision was incredibly blurred, but he could make out that two people were standing over him, and he was laying on the couch he had fallen asleep on the night before. He began to raise his left hand, which Uraraka, who was holding it, let go. He brought the hand up to his face and rubbed his eyes before attempting to open them again.

They opened with ease, and he began to recognize more things in the room. The two figures standing over him were Uraraka and Iida, which was comforting to see. Both had worrisome expressions on their faces, and Uraraka even had some tears forming in the corner of her eyes.

“Uraraka… Iida…” Midoriya croaked. His voice hasn’t completely warmed up yet, but it seemed that saying their names was all it took to relieve his friends. 

Uraraka smiled at him. “Welcome back to the land of the living,” she joked, resting her hand on his again. “How are you… feeling?” she asked.

How _was_ he feeling? It was great to finally be awake again, but soon the memories from whatever the hell happened a few hours ago would return, and he wasn’t sure how he’d react to them.

“Okay.” he responded for the meantime. He figured he’d make sense of everything later. For now, he noticed that a worrisome look had returned to Iida’s face. He guessed that not attempting to sit up raised concern, so he began to stretch while he was lying down to prepare to sit up. Iida saw this and held his upper body to help him. 

It was daytime now, and Midoriya realized that this meant the third day of their vacation had began. Unfortunately, this brought around a number of questions that he couldn’t ignore.

“What… what time is it? How long was I even out? And are we late to our next location??” he asked in a hurry. 

Uraraka placed a hand over her mouth and began to chuckle. “Midoriya… only you would worry about a schedule after waking up from some coma.” It was an odd thing to be joking about, but positive emotions and light conversation were appreciated in the tense environment. 

Still, Midoriya wanted to know, so he looked at Iida and trusted him to give our the information.

Iida sighed. “We’re glad you finally woke up and are worried about your schedule, but right now you don’t need to be focusing on where we need to be. This trip is actually dependent on you, _you_ decide where you want to be and want to go, really.” he informed Midoriya. It was true after all, the schedule was only made to suggest some plans to Midoriya in case he needed some inspiration on where to go. “And right now,” Iida continued, “We’d all appreciate it if you rested and told us _what is going on._ ”

“Iida… let him completely wake up and get fed before we ask him to explain… are you hungry Midoriya?” Uraraka asked, getting closer to pat his head.

Instinctively, like usual, his stomach grumbled a little. “Well now that you mentioned it, I am,” Midoriya replied. The thought of food and eating distracted his mind a little and comforted him, but it wasn't enough to stop the sudden wave of emotions that he had been waiting for come around since he had awoken.

He involuntarily began to relapse into them, and remembered them all so vividly that he was struck with horror for a moment. The suffocation, the heat, the deathly aura, the _thing_. The emotions were so prominent and terrifying that his body jerked and he held onto Uraraka to comfort himself.

Instead of asking questions, Uraraka responded by also holding onto him, enclosing him in a hug as best as she could with her small body. “We’re here, Midoriya.” she assured him, snuggling him. 

Iida nodded at some guards who were posted by the door, signaling them to bring some food for Midoriya before he also enclosed Uraraka and Midoriya in a hug. Their poor prince was undoubtedly suffering.

The three of them remained like this until the food arrived. For now, Midoriya appreciated their efforts to comfort him while he experienced the rush of terrifying feelings. The memories had come back to, playing out in his head as if they were being re-enacted and played out right in front of him, despite his attempt to shield his mind from them. Truthfully, he _was_ scared, but he wasn’t alone this time. Surely, Uraraka and Iida would help him make sense of everything soon.

The guard knocked on the doorway and let himself in, placing the trays of food on the table quickly before excusing himself and leaving once again.

Iida was the first to begin to unwrap himself from the group hug, noting that it was most important to let Midoriya eat right now. Uraraka did the same, but grabbed Midoriya’s hand and gave it a kiss before sitting down next to him. Iida then placed a blanket around Midoriya’s shoulders, since the temperature was still cool from it being the morning. He then sat down on the couch across from Midoriya and Uraraka.

Midoriya edged forward on the couch a bit and first took a long, plentiful drink of water from a glass that had been placed there by the guard. Iida had also leaned forward to remove the cover tray from the plate of food to undercover it.

Honestly, the food was definitely made by Sato. It looked like a complex meal with an assortment of different appetizers and main dishes. Mostly importantly, it looked a lot like fuel food, which Midoriya appreciated. Within minutes, he was trying out all of the different tastes, not sparing any section of the food.

Uraraka and Iida gazed at him with comfort, glad that he at least had a sense of hunger. They didn’t mind not sharing either, since they had been eating steadily whilst they were in the room waiting for Midoriya to wake up.

Several plates and bitefuls of food later, Midoriya began slowing down his eating pace. Before taking a pause to digest what he had already consumed, he finished the glass of water he drank from initially, and rested against the couch.

“Oh man, that was too good,” he said wiping a tear that had unnecessarily formed in his right eye.

Uraraka laughed at this. “I guess that was his way of apologizing.”

Midoriya peaked a glance over at her. “Apologizing?” he asked, rubbing his now-full belly.

Oops, Uraraka had made another inappropriate joke. She looked over at Iida, who sighed before beginning to explain, “Initially, when you wouldn’t wake up, we.... feared that it might’ve been something in the champagne, since it was only you and Sato who had drank from the last bottle.”

Thinking back, Midoriya did remember that Uraraka and Iida had fallen asleep before drinking from the last bottle. The champagne having been poisoned was an arguable fact. “So did Sato…”

“No, nothing happened to him, which is why I lay that suspicion to rest,” Iida quickly informed him. He had momentarily remembered how angry he felt towards Sato, which soon turned out to be misplaced anger. So now that Midoriya was full, and one suspicion was ruled out, it was time to actually get a lead on what had happened that night. This time, Iida wouldn’t rest until his master had complete peace at mind.

Midoriya saw Iida’s thinking expression and guessed that it was time to reveal his side of the story. The fear that had expressed itself earlier returned and burdened his courage, but he was comforted by reminding himself that Uraraka and Iida were there to listen and help him. With that, he pushed himself to remember the beginning of what seemed like a dream.

“Firstly, I’m sorry, to the both of you. I have many dreams, many visions, realistic and unrealistic alike, and I never let you in on them. Until now,” he held his hand out, palm facing up and glanced at it, “I figured it was best not to worry you both with them. They’re just dreams, after all. Nothing I can’t figure out or handle, at least, that’s what my pride would think.

“But this time… this wasn’t just some dream. It was different, _dramatically_ different, and now I find myself… fearful. From now on… I will trust you with them. I’m sorry it took so long for me to realize.” 

He finished his apology and bowed slightly, to which Uraraka began to pat his back. “Midoriya, we’ve known you already trust us for so many things. You don’t need to apologize, we’re just happy that you’ve realized something and are letting us help you with it.”

Midoriya raised himself from his bow and nodded at the both of them, and with that, he put on a determined expression and proceeded to explain the start of his night terror.

First, he recalled how his consciousness had woken up first, due to some voice that had called out his name. “It didn’t sound hostile at first,” he explained, “and I actually thought it was Uraraka. It called out my name twice, and then that’s when I was able to open my eyes and…” he stopped to take a breath. “Saw _something_ there,” he pointed at the corner of the room to their left, “which then said my name again.”

“It still wasn’t terrifying, since I didn’t register it as a threat, but what bothered me the most was that I couldn’t… I couldn’t move my body. I wanted to get up, to ask who it was and what it wanted, but I was limited to only being able to move my eyes around. That’s when the fear started to settle in.” He trembled a little.

“When I realized I was afraid, it started to talk more. I think it said things like… ‘ _why’_ and _look_ ‘. After that… something even more grand began to happen. The room… it was lit up with brilliant flames. That was when I…” he gulped, “I _thought_ I was going to die. Uraraka, Iida, it was _so_ realistic. What I felt most prominent was the lack of oxygen in the room, I truly thought I was about to suffocate.” he finished explaining.

Uraraka and Iida shot each other a look. “What?” Midoriya asked, having noticed.

Iida cleared his throat. “Initially we noticed something was going on with you because you started to gasp violently for air. I’m ashamed… I barely was able to hear you and wake up from my disgusting drunken state. I thought you might had been drowning in vomit or something of the sort, but when I reached you, there was no liquids or anything. It must’ve been during that part of the terror…” he trailed off.

“You were… here? In the room?” Midoriya also asked.

“Yes,” Iida replied, “Though I didn’t reach you as quickly as I’d have liked. I tried to shake you awake, but honestly, I was so incomprehensible that I was probably doing nothing. I’m sorry.”

Midoriya shook his head. “It’s fine. But… in the dream, I _swear_ my eyes were open and I was seeing the room, yet I didn’t see any of you, not even when you claim to have tried to wake me up.”

Uraraka began to think. “You know… this sounds like… sleep paralysis.” she informed them. “Have you heard anything about that?”

Iida and Midoriya tried to recall if they had. “Hmm… I might have seen a report on it just once… while I was waiting in the infirmary for something. But quite frankly I’m clueless,” Midoriya reported.

“Well, if I remember correctly, sleep paralysis is being in a state of mind that’s not completely awake, nor asleep. You said you had no control over your body, correct?” she asked Midoriya. He nodded in agreement. “That’s one of the symptoms, your conscience is awake but your body is still sleeping. That explains the ability to look around with your eyes, but failure to move your arms and legs.”

“That's… terrible.” Midoriya deadpanned. “But that doesn’t explain why I didn’t see either of you, and instead saw some demonic spawn from the underworld.”

Uraraka bit his lip to prevent herself some chuckling. The way Midoriya said that made it unintentionally funny, but she convinced herself the environment was too serious to make light of Midoriya’s night terror.

“Anyhow,” Midoriya continued, “I kept trying to talk to it, but my voice kept failing me. It started talking again, but I can’t really remember what it said.” He was truly trying hard to remember, but nothing was coming up in his mind. At that moment, he was too fixated on the heatless flames and the feeling of suffocation that was making him panic. But then, he remembered something else that was very important. 

“It was… a person.” he said, after thinking deeply. “I remember, the room was lit up and I saw… some tortured person that was asking for help. It was horrifying, their skin was all burnt, but for some reason I…”. He paused and remembered the words ‘ _You can’t_ ’ and ‘ _I need_ ’, “I wanted to help it. But it said I couldn’t, and began to wail and cry for it’s life.”

Uraraka’s hands were around her face. “Midoriya… that is absolutely terrifying. I didn’t know…”

“But I wasn’t scared, Uraraka. It was asking for help, and it seemed harmless. I remember feeling calm before…” his hands instinctively went to his neck, “it pounced on me.”

Iida crossed his arms. “That doesn’t sound harmless, Midoriya.” he said.

Midoriya let out a small chuckle. “Obviously,” he replied. “But that was when I fell asleep again. Or rather, passed out.”

“It didn’t say anything else? What it has said so far sounds confusing, which I don’t doubt that it’s a result from your brain randomly spewing out words for it to say.” Uraraka said.

“You’re right… it did actually. ‘ _You_ ’ was the last thing.”

“You?” Uraraka and Iida both asked in unison. Midoriya nodded. 

“Seems like that exaggerated mind of yours was creating some self-fulfilling prophecy,” a voice at the door spoke. They were all alarmed by the intruders sudden appearance and faced the doorway to see who it was. They were greeted by Sato’s face.

“Sato.” Midoriya greeted.

Iida ‘hmphed’ in response. “I’d appreciate it if you didn’t make light of our companions night terror, Sato.”

“Pardon the intrusion.” Sato responded, walking into the room. “Hey, come on now, I’m not. It just _really_ sounds like one. Uraraka explained right? Sleep paralysis, in other words, is a form of dreaming.” he explained, standing by Midoriya. “But really, I’m glad to see you’re okay, young one.” He said, patting Midoriya’s back. “How was the food?”

“Oh, beyond excellent as always,” Midoriya praised him, having been distracted by this new topic of conversation. “I had to stop and digest what I’ve eaten so far to make room for the rest.” He said, patting his stomach. “Thank you, really.”

Sato nodded once. “As long as it gets you back on your feet, I’m glad. So then… last night was some false alarm huh?”

“Not technically, dreams aren’t always completely random you know.” Uraraka informed Sato. “Dreams consist of deep thoughts… secret desires… heavy burdens… all of that sort. Midoriya is gonna need to think real hard about himself… and meditate.”

Midoriya groaned. “I think enough already as it is.” 

“That's exactly my point. You need to properly start sorting and evaluating your thoughts, Midoriya. Honestly, I always see you writing in your notebooks, but now I bring myself to wonder what you actually write about in them, “ she sighed.

“So we’re attacking my note-taking habits now, are we?” Midoriya said. 

Uraraka smiled. “I’m _saying_ , it’s time to take _your_ feelings and emotions seriously now. This event was probably some wake up call, and I suggest you listen to it, right Iida?”

Iida was listening attentively, and nodded in agreement with Uraraka. “She’s right, Midoriya. Although,” he straightened himself up on the couch, “The part about the flames… maybe that had to do with Endeavor?” he suggested. “He’s the only person we know with a fire-type quirk.”

“You’re right… maybe he’s the one haunting Midoriya’s subconscious thoughts.” Uraraka added.

Midoriya looked unamused. “I’m pretty _certain_ I’m not occupying myself thinking about _him_.” he said.

“You never know” Uraraka quietly whispered, her voice barely having reached Midoriya.

Midoriya scoffed. “The last person I know on earth that’d beg for help is that man, much less have me feel pity for him.”

Sato shrugged. “It makes sense, for now anyways. Guess you have to get crackin’ on those notebooks.” he said, turning to exit the room. “The carriage has been prepared for whether you decide to leave or not. I need to inspect some reports and training incidents, so I’ll see you again when you decide what to do.”

“Got it. Thank you, Sato.” Midoriya said. Sato turned to nod at him. “Oh and, sorry about Iida’s suspicion. Truly, that was the _finest_ champagne I’ve ever had. I’m thankful that you decided to share such a delicacy with us. Someday, we will return the favor.”

“Don’t worry about it too much,” Sato responded. He was going to say more, but one of the soldiers arrived to give him some news, and then he started to walk out again. “See you,” he said, exiting.

Once he had left, the room stayed silent, our beloved trio attempting to make sense of Midoriya’s dreams. Uraraka and Iida didn’t have the direct context to come up with more suggestions, so it was up to Midoriya to figure things out indepthly by himself, though his friends swore they would still be there to help him in any way that they could.

He figured he’d start back with the roots of another strong dream he had a few days ago, the dream about his mother and… Todoroki.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> so I've realized that this fic will be in parts... so with that being said, PART I will end soon, who where will the story go after that??  
> huge THANK YOUUU <3 to all those who stuck around since the beginning, I'm actively trying to brush up on my writing style (cuz now that I been reading my past chapters, I'm like ew) THIS FIC IS FOR YOU!!
> 
> I'm getting so anxious to write smut, that I think I'm gonna make some spin-off one shots for this fic. for practice, y'know?
> 
> anyways our summary:  
> 13 1/2 yr - Midoriya lives at the castle  
> 15 1/2 - Begins studying Yuuei  
> 16 (July 15) - Midoriya's Birthday, meets Todoroki  
> 16 (July 16 - 23) - Vacation  
>  >DAY 1: They leave, arrive at a village & the Inn, Midoriya meets Todoroki again  
>  >DAY 2: Todoroki accompanies them to the base, Midoriya has an uWu scawwy dream (sorry)  
>  >DAY 3: Todoroki forced to train his quirk everyday, Midoriya confronts his scawwy dream
> 
> honestly its largely for myself, don't want to hint at stuff early on and then forget about it lol  
> PLUS ULTRA!


	12. Imagining

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Midoriya, Iida, and Uraraka depart from Sato's base and begin their short journey to drop off Uraraka at her village. They end up meeting them and the newest member of their family, but Midoriya runs in with someone who makes uneasiness set ablaze in his body. Nonetheless, the villains continue to quietly move throughout the kingdom, meanwhile Endeavor and Todoroki get through their first day of training and make it to the Grasslands to meet with their King, Queen, and Crown-Prince.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> helloooo lovelies.
> 
> two weeks later, here I am woop.  
> BUCKLE yourselves in because we have three different POV's going on, and important stuff is said.   
> Honestly the reason why this turned out so long is cuz in my head I think 'Oh I just want a short scene with ___ and ___" and then that smol scene ends up being a few pages long haha... anyways, if you enjoy plot and plot, uLtImAtE tRiO friendship times, and two boy's who subconsciously motivate each other, here it be!

“Excuse me, your highness.” Iida said as we walked into Midoriya’s room. He walked over to Midoriya, who was seated at a desk on the right side of the room, and set a glass of water on it. “We’re set to depart at five in the afternoon as you have requested.” He informed him.

Midoriya stopped writing from his notebook and looked at the glass, reaching for it. “Thank you,” he said, picking up the glass and taking a long drink from it.

Iida watched over him, but then his eyes strayed to the notebook. “How are you doing with… that?” he asked, nodding his head in the direction of the notebook.

Once Midoriya had finished swallowing his last drink, he set the glass down and adjusted in his seat while he also faced his notebook. 

“... Well,” Midoriya began to respond, “I’ve got some clues but… some other information is in a notebook back at the castle.”

Iida tilted his head. “Other information?” 

“Yeah...” Midoriya answered, “It’s about…” he hesitated for a moment. Initially, he had hid this information from Iida and resolved to continue doing so, but he remembered his promise from earlier to trust Iida instead of pushing him away. “You... asked me about something one morning, the day I joined you with your training.”

Iida thought for a brief second, and then immediately remembered what Midoriya was talking about. It had happened a couple of months ago, when Iida had noticed that Midoriya had woken up suddenly and jumped in his bed. “I remember you telling me it was nothing,” he said, adjusting his glasses. “I guessed it really _wasn’t_ nothing, but I was in no place to pry that early…”

Midoriya sighed. “I know, and I’m sorry. And you’re right, it wasn’t nothing. It was a another dream again, one of those super surreal feeling ones.” He began to explain. “I still remember it, but I don’t want to mix up any details…”

“...I see.” Iida responded. “Guess it’ll have to wait.”

Midoriya nodded. “Guess it will.”

The two remained in the silence that Midoriya had started, and filled the room with a somewhat tense atmosphere. Iida wasn’t feeling for it though, and walked over behind Midoriya and placed both of his hands on the prince’s shoulders. “Cheer up, Midoriya. We still have tonight and four more days to enjoy before you get locked up back in the castle and deal with a lot of oncoming things. Let’s enjoy our time away, you still want to try some of the seafood from the lake, don’t you?”

Midoriya perked up, and briefly thought back to his conversation with All Might before he had left about the food here in the north. He smiled. “That’s right, All Might even praised it when we spoke before I left.”

In the skylight, a cloud had just finished passing over the sun, letting the room lighten up with the new sunbeams that were coming down. Iida patted Midoriya’s shoulders now. “Well, what do you say we say our goodbyes to our friends here before we start to load up on the carriage? There were a few who had heard about what happened this morning and wanted to check up on you before we leave.”

At first Midoriya felt gratitude for his companions worries, but then he felt confused. “How do they even know what happened this morning?” He asked.

“Oh, you know how word travels, Midoriya. Especially since we’re some of the first guests to have visited here. You’re, in a sense, _very_ popular.” Iida answered. 

Midoriya chuckled. “Is it bad that I don’t mind hearing that?”

Iida gently shook his head. “I prefer you enjoying it rather than getting flustered and shying away like you would normally do when you were younger. But sometimes I do wonder what happened to that little Midoriya.”

“He grew up, that’s all.” Midoriya responded, organizing his papers into a neat pile and then standing up. “Shall we go?”

Iida nodded. “Yes, your highness.” He walked over to the door and held it open as Midoriya walked through first, and followed after him.

-

“It was truly a pleasure having you stay with us, Midoriya, Iida, and Uraraka. We will be awaiting your next visit with anticipation.” Sato announced, speaking to all three of them who were standing in a line. 

“The pleasure is ours.” Iida responded, bowing slightly. “Thank you for taking us into your care.” Midoriya and Uraraka also joined in and bowed with him.

Sato smiled, but it faded slowly as he thought of his next response. “I’m sorry about… what happened this morning… I…”

“Don’t worry about it.” Midoriya told him. “You had nothing to do with it, it’s all this little devil’s work,” he said, pointing to his head. 

Sato responded with a quiet chuckle. “I advise you to be careful with your overthinking had led many people to astounding breakthroughs, but sometimes it also leads to severe consequences. Please look after yourself well, and IIda,” he turned to look at Iida in the eyes, “I trust you to watch over him well too.”

“You know I will.” Iida responded.

Sato began to grin again. “Well then. We wish you well on your journey.”

“Thank you!” Midoriya, Iida, and Uraraka exclaimed. With that, they waved at some other soldiers who had chosen to see them off as well, and then turned around to begin boarding the carriage, excited to reach their heir next destination, which was Uraraka’s village.

-

“About how far do you think it is from here, Iida?” Midoriya asked, getting comfy in his seat. Uraraka and Iida had agreed to let him have the seat to himself, which was somewhat dissatisfying because he had hoped to lean and sleep on one of them during the trip.

“Hmm…” Iida said, looking over the map in his hands. “It’s about…. Well actually, shouldn’t you know?”

“Iiiii don’t feel like thinking.” Midoriya sang. It seems he was finally starting to relax.

Uraraka laughed a little. “It shouldn’t take more than little over an hour.” She told them, looking out the window. 

Iida and Midoriya could tell she was excited. 

“How old is she... your sister?” Midoriya asked.

Uraraka stopped looking at the window and look up, thinking for a second. “The letter said a month… so I hope that’s true and not some other lie to make me feel better.”

“That’s not too bad…” Iida interjected. “For the first month of their lives, babies tend to look as if they had barely been born the day before.”

Midoriya looked at him funny. “How do you know this, Iida? Have you begun to secretly take maternity classes to accommodate for your scariness?” he asked. Even Uraraka was giving Iida a puzzled look too.

Iida adjusted his glasses. “It’s really basic information”, he said, defending himself. “I said it to comfort you, Uraraka. I didn't expect you to attack me too.”

Uraraka laughed. “I know, I know. Thank you,” she said, rubbing his arm. “I was upset earlier when I told Midoriya back at the castle, but I don’t feel so bad anymore. I guess the fun we’ve had on this trip overshadowed all those sad feelings,” she explained honestly. 

Midoriya smiled at her. “I’m glad to hear that,” he told her. “Do you think we’ll be able to see her as well?”

“Of course!” She exclaimed enthusiastically. “I always write about you two in my letters, so my parents will be pleased to meet you. Actually, while we’re there I can ask them about some local seafood shops for you.”

“Ah, I’d like that.” Midoriya responded. His hands moved down his stomach. “That reminds me, i didn’t eat anything after that breakfast in the morning,” he pouted. “I was too distracted…”

“I know.” Iida interrupted him. He reached for a bag that was near his feet. “I had Sato pack a few things for us for the ride, take something from here,” he said, handing the bag over to Midoriya.

Midoriya took the bag without hesitation, and began digging through it. “Oh Iida, those maternity classes are really shining through right now,” he said as he took a bite from an apple. 

Iida just rolled his eyes. “Just leave some for us too.”

After a few more bites, Midoriya nodded.

-

“Stand, Shoto. If you can’t handle my hits, then you can forget about winning a battle against anyone in your future.”

Todoroki stayed on the floor, coughing and kneeled over in pain. “You’re… only doing this because…” he paused to spit some blood out of his mouth, “because Mother isn’t here…” he said weakly. As much as he wanted to exemplify his strength and show Endeavor that his pride was stronger than this useless training, his body refused to face their abuser.

“Tch. That woman only gets in our way. She can only meddle between us so much.” Endeavor replied, crossing his arms. His flames were brilliantly lighting up the area around them, even though it was still daylight. They had been training for several hours at a time, only stopping to eat something small every once in a while. 

“Don’t… _speak_ of her like that _._ ” Todoroki said in a strong voice, his anger overshadowing his fear.

Endeavor shrugged. “It’s the truth. You’d be at superior levels right now if it weren’t for her. Sooner or later, you’ll realize than she’s nothing more than a hindrance to you, whether you’d like to or not.”

Todoroki tried standing again, ready to give a piece of his mind to the scumbag, but again his body was failing him. No matter how hard he tried, or how much resolve he built up, his muscles were uncooperative. He was truly exhausted. 

Endeavor sighed above him. “Someone bring him some water and a meal,” he said, beginning to walk away. 

A few seconds had passed and then Todoroki felt some cloth get put over him. He sat back onto his heels and saw that his two guards had brought him a pitcher of water and some bread. He sighed and accepted the water first. “Thank you,” he said before gulping down almost the entire thing. The first few drinks had the lingering taste of iron due to the wound that was opened up in his mouth when Endeavor hit him flat in the face, causing him to bleed because he had ended up biting himself. “That scumbag…” he said quietly to himself, now accepting the bread. 

Today only marked the first day of their training. Todoroki still had to yet to endure another twenty-something days of this ridiculous sudden regimen. As he ate the bread, the anger in his mind gently subsided to bring in thoughts of his mother, Rei. He wondered how she would react to these lessons. Without a doubt, she’d protest, which Todoroki rather wished she wouldn’t because it would always result in…

He didn’t want to think about those troubling thoughts, not now. Maybe if he could speak to her before she finds out about them through someone else, then maybe he can convince her to not speak up, for her sake. It was the same situation everytime, and the same outcome. For once. Todoroki was beginning to wish she protected herself rather than stick a leg out for him and face harsh consequences. 

He took a bite of the bread, and began to think about other things now. His body and mind were tired, but he refused to give in to his exhaustion and sleep vulnerably in front of Endeavor. He needed something to occupy his mind… anything…

Someone, maybe? 

-

“That was _not_ an hour,” Midoriya said, stepping out of the carriage.

They had arrived to Uraraka’s village much sooner than they had expected, and now they were unboarding the carriage to stretch out their legs. Uraraka’s house wasn’t far away, but the plan was for her to see them first and then break the news about Midoriya and Iida accompanying her. If they all went first, her parents might get a little too flustered.

Uraraka didn’t take too long to stretch, so she began to announce her departure. “Alright you two, I’m off,” she said swiftly, adjusting the bag on her back.

“You sure you don’t want a guard to go with you?” Iida asked, stretching out his shoulders.

“Mhmm,” Uraraka confirmed. “Trust me, this place might even be as safe and calm as she castle,” she said delightfully.

‘ _I sure hope so’,_ Midoriya thought. He didn’t doubt Uraraka’s village, but one had the tendency to always be overconfident in the safety of one’s hometown. He found this out when he was almost robbed during a trip to his own hometown. Since then, he can never get too comfortable anywhere, even though he was able to protect himself and his friends now. 

“Alright then, come back here to get us when you’re ready,” Iida told her, sitting on the ledge of a well that was near them.

“I will. See you two soon!” she exclaimed, waving and turning around to begin her short walk.

Midoriya finished waving and waited until she was no longer within visual distance to turn around and walk towards Iida. “How long do you think it’ll take?” he asked Iida, taking a seat next to him on the ledge. 

“Not sure,” Iida responded. “I’ve never met them before, I don’t know how ready they’ll be for guests.” 

Midoriya put his lips into an ‘o’ position and looked at the ground. “...Are we just going to sit here?” 

Iida laughed. “I didn’t know you were restless. Would you like to walk around?”

Midoriya nodded innocently.

Iida began to stand up and patted some debris off of his pants. “Alright, but if we’re not here when she comes back, I’m putting all the blame on you.”

Midoriya also stood up and began to walk forward. He shrugged. “I’m fine with that.”

-

“To wander around so close to the castle… you must be out of your mind.”

“I don’t believe in the slightest that anyone knows who we are… but you’re right about that other part… I’ve _been_ out of my mind.”

The two men continued walking along the path, noting that they must be getting close to a village due to the large amounts of freshly cut grass and used paths. They started to significantly slow down their pace, listening attentively for any voices of sounds of movement. It’s not like they were keeping watch because they were on a particular task, but rather they wanted to be cautious of what they said in case someone nearby would overhear. 

But in Muscular’s mind, even if someone had been hearing them, he wouldn’t fret too much over it. It’s not like dead men could relay information.

“Why here anyways? I’m sure the place is still on high alert because of what happened a couple of months ago…”

Muscular sighed. “ _Exactly_. We’re looking for anyone who might know something about that little green-haired brat.”

“Ohh… right…”

After that comment, the two continued to walk in silence. But a few minutes later, the sounds of some hooves and steel wheels began to echo in their direction.

“Perfect…” whispered Muscular. The two moved over to the right side of the road, and waited the arrival of the carriage. 

It took a minute for it to get close enough to them for Muscular to get their attention. 

“Hey, hey!” He called out, waving an arm in the air. He succeeded in getting the driver’s attention, and the carriage stopped. Muscular gave his companion a quick glance before walking over to the driver, slouching slightly to hide a bit of his huge complexion. “Hey there, sorry for the interruption buddy.”

“Don’t worry about it. What do you gentlemen need?” The driver responded.

“We’re just wondering where the next village is… we come from Fari and we didn’t pack much food for our walk… we wanna know if we should eat some grass right now or wait it out.” He laughed lightly.

The driver also returned a slight laugh. “I see. Well don’t worry gentlemen, there’s not need to force yourselves to do that. The next village is about a fifteen minute walk from here, and there’s some food shops at the entrance.”

“Ah… that’s really good to hear.” Muscular replied. He rubbed his belly a little. “I don’t think grass was just gonna cut it....” he said, gesturing at his companion with his head. HIs companion let out a nervous laugh.

The driver laughed at this scene. “I feel you, the sights on the paths between the villages really take a lot from you… you’ll make it there soon. Hold on til’ then, we haven’t heard about humans eating other humans since that old accident involving some lunatic with steel teeth.”

“Oh right…” said Muscular, thinking back to that man. “Where are you headed, anyways?”

The driver hesitated for a second, but decided to respond anyways. “A village not too far from here, we just came to visit this village for some of it’s excellent fish food dishes. I recommend y’all to try some if you can, tastes like they were just caught this morning.”

“Sounds too good to pass.” Muscular replied. “Well, we won’t take up any more of your time. Thanks for the information good sir, hope to see you around these parts.”

The driver nodded. “No problem. Definitely, enjoy your time here.” He said, slightly bowing his head before fastening the reigns in his hands and making the horses being to trot again. Muscular gave him one last wave before continuing on their journey again.

“For a second, I really thought you were going to….”

“ _Trust me. I **really** wanted to_. But there’ll be time for that later… I think I’ll send them an old ‘friend’ too… Let’s just get some grub and find some stuff out for the boss now.”

“I didn’t really take you for someone who prioritized someone else’s demands.”

Muscular thought for a second. “I figured the more they trust me, the more he’ll let me do, you know?”

Muscular twitched slightly. Truthfully, he was _aching_ for a fight, for some action, for _anything_. It had been awhile since he was able to run free and cause havoc wherever he went, since the boss had decided it was better to work underground and in silence. It was hard to understand and be patient, but once he was promised the ability to do something once the boss got what he wanted, so he figured he could wait until then.

“Soon…” he said, trailing off and letting his voice slowly die as they continued walking towards the village.

-

Midoriya’s stomach grumbled.

“Iida-”

“Didn’t you eat on the carriage?”

“Yeah, but it wasn’t _food_ food.” Midoriya replied, looking at the different shops and inhaling all of their different savory aromas. Midoriya could already picture it now, a table full of beautiful things from the giant lake near the castle. Some lightly baked salmon here, some deep fried oysters over there, pot after pot of boiled crabs and such. It was great that they had access to all of these animals that lived in freshwater. What was even better is that the didn’t require much seasoning to make them great, a little salt, spices and butter did a great deal of justice.

Iida took a look at Midoriya and could tell that he was thinking about all those things. His eyes were practically sparkling whenever he spotted some fish at one of the shop stands. “Alright,” he said, looking at a few shops at what seemed like the outer edge of the village. “Let’s work our way down to those over there and then pick from what we think looked like the best.”

“Yes sir!” Midoriya responded, already eyeing a couple of selections from the stands to his left. 

The two would separate occasionally to look at some foods closer, observing the reactions of people who had bought what they had their eyes on. Needless to say, they were plenty busy and distracted that Midoriya didn’t see a very huge and obvious man standing behind him while he looked at some fried catfish from a shop.

“Ingenium! I think this is it-!” Midoriya called for Iida, beginning to back away and search for his companion.

As soon as he began to back up, he immediately made contact with the man behind him, bumping into him rather forcefully, causing him to recoil from the hit and almost fall back. 

Luckily, or perhap unluckily, he was caught by the same man he had bumped in to. “Watch out there,” the man spoke, taking a hold of Midoriya by his arm. “A few more steps and you’d be joined the fish for a rather hurtful experience.”

Stunned, Midoriya had seen that he was about to fall into one of the pots of frying oil that the cooks were using to cook the catfish, and gasped when he realized he could have almost met his end right then and there. The man tugged his arm and helped him stand back up again. “Oh my- t-thank you,” he began to say, turning to face his savior.

He was met by a rather surprising figure, someone that seemed to be almost twice his size. He also looked ultra-built, his coat lavishly outlining the muscles that lay underneath it. He was blonde too, if that count for anything.

“No worries, partly my fault for stand so close to you,” he said, backing away a bit.

“Ah… really, I should’ve been more c-careful.” Midoriya stuttered out, still taken aback by how _big_ this man was.

“Say no more, if you really want to apologize, how about you buy me one of those little critters?” the man suggested, pointing at one of the catfish that was currently being fried to bits. 

“Of… of course.” Midoriya said. He looked past the figure of the huge man in front of him and searched for Iida, who much to his relief, was already trotting over.

“Is everything fine?? I heard some commotion-”

“It’s fine. I just need money.” Midoriya whispered quickly, extending out his hand.

Iida got the message and read urgency in Midoriya’s eyes, complying with his request immediately. He pulled out a small leather sack that was in his right pocket and handed the whole thing to Midoriya, who took it and hesitantly began to walk back to the stand. Iida walked behind him quietly, and saw what must have shaken up Midoriya so bad.

“O-One of those catfish dishes, please,” Midoriya told the shopkeeper, handing over the amount that the dish cost before the shopkeeper had even asked for it. A few awkward seconds passed by before one of the cooks handed over a dish to Midoriya, who quietly thanked him and then immediately turned to give the plate to the stranger. 

The man took the plate gently from his hands. “I can sense your frighteness from here,” the man joked, chuckling lightly. “I wouldn’t hurt anyone who just bought me some food. I was joking about that anyways.”

Midoriya’s eyes widened for a second while a chill ran down his spine, but he composed himself shortly afterward to respond to the man. He began by nervously laughing. “O-Oh, really?” he asked, scratching the back of his head and looking away. If he was being frank with himself, this man gave his body every warning to set his sympathetic nervous system to it’s ‘flight’ responses. “It’s nothing really…” he finally said.

“Nah, it is something. Thank you, uh….”

Ah, the man was clearly asking for his name now. What should he say?

Apparently he had stayed suspiciously silent for too long, because Iida spoke up for him instead. “Deku,” he said calmly, getting closer. “I apologize for his nervousness, anxiety really takes itself out on him while we tour villages.” 

“Oh, I see…” the man trailed off, observing Iida. “Well, no malice or grudges held here. Are you two also visiting from elsewhere?” he asked now, eyeing Midoriya again.

“No, we’re from around these parts actually.” Iida responded, focusing the man’s attention back on himself. “The cool weather really made some of the freshwater fish here seem appetizing in our minds, so we came over to check out today’s catches. That catfish looks rather delicious.” Iida replied, bringing all of their attentions to the dish.

“I feel you… my buddy and I are visiting from Fari and we had some sudden cravings for these foods as well.” the man explained, looking over his fish. “Do you guys have time to spare? I’d like to hear more about what your village has to offer, if you don’t mind…”

Iida readjusted his glasses. “We’d love to tell you more, but we actually have to meet up with some of the guards stationed here to give them reports about the activities going on here.”

‘ _Nice_ ’ Midoriya thought.

“Ah, that’s too bad. You two work at the castle?”

‘... _Not nice_ ,’ Midoriya thought. For some reason, that question made his stomach drop further down than it already was. 

“Not officially, no. But we like to offer and do what little we can for the King.” Iida replied smoothly. 

“I see. Was thinking it’d be nice to be given some information about this place from you two since you have some friendly faces,” the man responded, visibly disappointed. “Well, I’m sure we ran into each other for some reason. See you around.” he said, waving at them and walking towards a table that had someone else sitting there, a short man.

Iida returned a small wave and began to order more catfish, taking the leather pouch of money back from Midoriya. Meanwhile, Midoriya was still frozen in place. He didn’t know _what_ exactly was bothering him so much about that man, but he knew his gut was trying to tell him something for a reason. Hopefully when they weren’t in such an intimidating presence, he could correctly analyze his uneasiness. 

The cook handed over two more dishes of catfish and Iida thanked him, handing one to Midoriya, who was barely registering what was happening. Obviously, he felt that something was off with the man they had just met, and Iida wanted to make Midoriya feel safe as soon as he could. 

“Let’s go,” he said, gently nudging Midoriya with his shoulder. Once he saw that Midoriya was following him, he began to walk towards a spot where he knew a guard was present, instead of going back to their carriage. 

It didn’t take long to get there, and once they did, the guard that was there recognized them immediately. 

“Deku, Ingenium! What an honor to see you both here,” he said, walking over to greet them.

“Greetings Seth, likewise!” Iida greeted back, meeting him halfway and enthusiastically shaking his hand. Almost immediately, he pulled Seth closer and whispered into his ear, “Got a confirmed secure spot?”

Seth’s expression remained joyous, but his tone had dropped and became more serious. “The Inn at the left.” He responded, gesturing towards it with his head.

“Thanks, I’ll see you on our way out.” Iida said, beginning to walk towards the Inn.

“Of course.” Seth replied, walking back to his post. 

Iida walked in first, holding the door so that Midoriya could sneak in beneath his arm. Iida looked around for more familiar faces, to which he did. They all recognized him as quickly as Seth did, and nodded to acknowledge his presence. 

The Inn, or rather the restaurant section of the Inn, was fairly busy, which Iida thanked some invisible deity for. 

A waitress soon approached them as well. “Welcome gentlemen,” she greeted. “Just two?” she asked, eyeing their plates of food. 

“Yes, please.” Iida responded, nodding.

The waitress turned around and led them to a table that was in the fair back, the furthest away from the entrance, which Iida wasn’t sure if it was a coincidence or if the waitress had also seen the panic that was present in Midoriya’s eyes. 

Anyhow, they sat down and Iida began to talk immediately. “We won’t stay here for long because I’d hate for Uraraka to walk back to the carriage by herself, even if our guards are there. What did you feel?”

Midoriya stared down at his plate. “ _Uneasiness_ …” he slowly whispered. “That man did _not_ give off an ounce of good vibes,” he continued, picking at his catfish. “He felt… dangerous. Murderous.”

Iida stared at him intensely. “Did he seem like someone from a dream?”

Midoriya immediately shook his head. “No, no. This is my first time seeing him.”

Iida folded his hands in front of himself. The waitress had set a pitcher of water and two glasses on their table, as well as some forks for their meals. She didn’t seem to mind that they had brought in food from outside. Perhaps she was in on the soldiers and Iida’s history. 

“Well, he was polite enough to not raise any red flags immediately. It seems you were the only one bothered by him. Were you just.... Intimidated?” Iida asked, taking a bite of his catfish after he finished talking.

“Maybe…” Midoriya replied, picking up a fork and picking at the catfish. “I mean, you _saw_ him right? He was almost as big as All Might…”

Iida hummed in agreement. 

Midoriya wished he had the appetite that Iida had, but at the moment, he couldn’t fathom putting anything into his body. He knew he’d negatively react to it, since his muscles fibers were still set to ‘flight’ and were ready to get him moving at a moment’s notice. 

‘Come on, eat a little at least.” Iida told him, leaning over and taking his fork from him. Midoriya briefly thought that Iida was really going to feed him, but Iida actually just began to tear at the fish with both forks, separating the meat from the spiny bones. 

That was actually really assuring, and Midoriya took back the fork once Iida held it out to him. Slowly, he began to gather small portions of the fish meat onto his fork and ate some of it, taking a while to chew it up until he was comfortable enough to swallow. 

Pleased with the return of Midoriya’s appetite, Iida turned to one of the soldiers that was sitting at the corner of the room, and waved at him to come over. Immediately the soldier walked over, greeting Iida by his alias and shaking his hand.

Midoriya didn’t really pay attention to what Iida was saying, staying rather focused on his food instead, but he figured that Iida was giving details about the man they had just met and warning them to watch out for suspicious activity. 

“Thank you,” Iida said once he had finished explaining, allowing the soldier to walk back to his group and relay the information that he had just learned to the other soldiers. Iida focused his attention back onto his food soon after, and noticed that Midoriya was nearly done with his own plate. “Would you like mine as well?” he asked, “I wasn’t that hungry anyways.”

Swallowing his current biteload, Midoriya shook his head, following with, “I’m not even completely sure that _this_ will stay down. Thank you, though. I’ll… I’ll get over it”

Iida continued to gaze at him. “Nobody’s rushing you, Midoriya. But I do want to emphasize that we are _safe_ , there’s no need to rack your brains about who he was, we’ll find out soon enough. _Trust_ us.”

‘ _I’m trying_ ,’ Midoriya wanted to say, but for now it only remained as a thought. Iida was right though, he couldn’t do anything _but_ trust them right now. His uneasiness wasn’t helping anyone in the current situation, so the faster he’d get over it the better. For now, the two remained in silence as they continued finishing their meals, choosing to think about how Uraraka’s reunion must’ve been going.

-

“That was him, wasn’t it.”

“Undoubtedly.”

“Shit…”

Muscular sighed and bit into his fish. He hadn’t expected to run into the little green-haired brat in such a bad way. On one hand, it was great that they had found him so early on in their search for him, but the way that they had met only set them up for failure. Despite not showing any hostile intent, the green-haired boy, Deku, still seemed to get afraid and suspect something about Muscular. The looks in his eyes and expressions has basically said, ‘ _You seem bad, therefore I’m going to tell the soldiers about you.’_ Muscular preferred to have spotted him first and then began their stalking, but even if Muscular had realized that he messed up in the moment, he couldn’t do anything about it anyways. Now their plan had to go in some other direction, one that would definitely lengthen their task. Could he still be in the boss’s good graces after this?

“When we're done, we’ll visit a few more shops, talk to a lot more people, and then scat. Alright?” Muscular told his companion. 

“Whatever you think is best…” his companion replied. “But if I may…”

Muscular growled.

The short man winced, but continued to speak despite the shiver going down his back. “S-Shouldn’t we contact _him_ now _?_ There’s no need to be rash about things… and the sooner the better...”

Muscular stopped growling to allow himself a moment to think. His companion was right, they had agreed to entrust most of the spying to _him_ despite whatever direction the plan had gone. 

“...You’re right. Let’s get that started then…” Muscular said slowly, observing two soldiers conversing with a table of people not too far from them. 

-

“Mother, father, I present to you my treasured companions, Deku and Iida!” Uraraka boasted cheerfully, extending her hands towards them, who were standing to her left. 

“My my! Welcome! You two look exceptionally well, which I mean, I guess it’s something to be expected since you’re from the castle!” Uraraka’s mother, greeted them, gesturing that they walk into the house.

“Mooooom,” Uraraka whined, looking around their surroundings. “Don’t bring up where they’re from, okay? They’re not here on official business…”

“Oh, our bad, our bad. Please, come on in where we can speak in a ‘safe’ environment.” Uraraka’s father spoke, winking at Uraraka and stepping back to let them walk in.

“Don’t worry about it, no harm done,” Midoriya said innocently, walking into the house first. Truly though, what Uraraka’s mother had just said could’ve _really_ done harm.

“We’re just really excited to finally meet you two, I feel like my husband and I already know so much about you because of how much Uraraka brings you two up in her letters. Especially you Iid-”

“Okay! Snacks you two? Some drinks? Seafood? Let’s get you two fed!” Uraraka interrupted her mother, continuing to name random snacks from the top of her head while she finished setting up the table. Midoriya and Iida exchanged a quick glance and chuckled before they composed themselves again, ready to finally learn more about Uraraka’s family. 

They spoke for hours, all of them taking turns to mention various things about themselves and talk about memories they’ve all had with Uraraka. For the most part, she stayed quiet while she listened to everyone recount their experiences with her, and was glad that her home family was now getting to bond with her away-from-home family. When she viewed it this way, she didn’t get bothered while hearing embarrassing things being said. For now, she would appreciate each of these moments as they came and went.

After catching up significantly, Uraraka’s mother brought out her sister, named Uravity in honor of Uraraka, and showed her off to the boys. Iida instantly accepted the task of holding her, but it took Midoriya a few more urges to get him to hold her. He was nervous at first, but the baby’s curious eyes melted away all of his nervousness and he began to live in the moment. She was surprisingly much lighter than what he thought a baby would weigh. Then again, he had never _actually_ held a baby before. Also, not that it even mattered, but this baby was _definitely_ Uraraka’s sibling because of her undeniably round face.

Midoriya figured he had held Uravity long enough and was going to hand her off to Iida began, but it nestled further into his chest and seemingly created some sort of magnetic bond with it. He decided to hold onto her longer. 

“So you two, will you be staying for the night? It’s not too far into the night, but it’s late enough to rest now,” Uraraka’s mother suggested, picking up some of their dishes after they had finished their desserts and sweet bread.

Midoriya was too busy dealing with Uravity’s cuteness, so Iida responded instead. “Thank you for your offer, but I believe we must get going on our way soon… Actually,” Iida turned to Midoriya, “It’s up to you, remember?”

Midoriya tore his attention away from Uravity for a split moment, suddenly reminded about their trip and that _man_. “You’re right, Iida. I’m sorry, we’d love to stay but we have to reach a few more destinations before our trip is over.”

Uraraka’s mother let out a disappointed sigh. “I see. We’d hate to get in the way of any business, but please make yourselves as comfy as you’d like before you get going.”

Iida and Midoriya bowed in unison, thanking her. Iida suddenly straightened up in his chair. “Uraraka, there's something I’d like to discuss with you real quick regarding your departure and all, do you have a minute?”

Uraraka blinked with slight confusion. “Of course,” she responded. Together they walked out the back door into the dark yard outside, leaving Midoriya alone with Uravity and her parents. It didn’t take long for another conversation to start soon after.

“So, Deku,” Uraraka’s father began, slinking a bit further into his chair. Somehow, he had given off some small omnipotent vibe that threw Midoriya off. “It seems that Uraraka spends a majority of her time with you two, huh?”

“Yeah…” Midoriya responded, “She helps us out with our tasks a lot since she wraps up her work rather early every day. Her time management is amazing.”

“I see… Well between you and me, I don’t mind her being in the presence of young, established men all the time, but as her father I, you know, want to know if there's something going on-”

“Ah! No no no, no.” Midoriya replied rather quickly, interrupting him. Despite negating what Uraraka’s father was hinting at, Midoriya still started to blush. A faded light pink tint had already spread across his face. “There’s nothing like that going on, at all. The three of us are just very close friends.”

“Really?” he asked. “I figured that there must be something going on by now, since you’re all in _that_ age,” he paused for a second to laugh. Midoriya also laughed along nervously. “It’s nothing to be ashamed or embarrassed about, young boy. I’m not sure how y’all are treated back at that castle, but it’s important to think about things like _that_ too. You’re all human after all.”

Midoriya clung onto Uravity a little tighter. The man was making sense, but it really wasn’t the time for them to be discussing such things. “I appreciate your concern, sir, but really, our tasks actually don’t give us time to indulge in things like that… and I don’t think either of us mind. Besides, to Iida and I, Uraraka is a wonderful comrade, someone that we see and care for as our equal. There’s a time and place for it I’m sure, but it definitely isn’t now.”

At this time Uraraka’s mother had returned from putting away the dishes and also joined the conversation. “What are you making the boy go on n’ on for?” she asked, sitting beside her husband. 

“I just figured I’d get to the bottom of his _true_ intentions with our little sunshine, but it seems that I was mildly worried about nothing,” he responded, taking a sip of coffee from his mug.

“Oh, I thought we were going to talk to the other boy, Iida.” she said. Suddenly a look of realization came upon Uraraka’s father and he dropped his head, meanwhile she laughed. “I’m sorry Deku,” she apologized, “Seems like he caught the wrong fish.”

“I’m… truly sorry,” he mumbled, head still hung low. Uraraka’s mother gave him a comforting pat on the back. 

“Don’t get us wrong,” she began to speak, “You’re handsome and seem worthy enough to handle our little girl, but her letters often tell about more accounts with Iida, which I assume is because their tasks are similar.”

She was right, the three were together for the majority of time, but in the moments that Midoriya had to deal with meetings or lessons on his own, Uraraka would spend time alone with Iida. Actually now that this conversation was starting to set into Midoriya’s head, he wondered about something he had never even given the slightest bit of thought or attention. _Was_ there something going on between Uraraka and Iida…? Surely there wasn’t, because they’d tell him right away, right? All the activities they had done together, all the time they spent alone, sleeping on each other during the idle time in the carriage…

He shook his head to himself. He shouldn’t be assuming things, certainly not in front of her parents. Like he mentioned earlier, he was sure his friends were in the same boat as him, unaware and uninterested in such things that would hinder their work. 

“It makes me glad to see how you two care about Uraraka. If we must really get to the bottom of things, I believe that I _respect_ Uraraka far too much to even think about anything involving those sort of things. As for Iida, well, I can’t speak on his behalf, but I know he feels like something like this with her as well. Uraraka is in her prime right now, developing her quirk and fulfilling her tasks at the castle. I know that she’s someone who doesn’t get distracted easily, so you two could rest such assumptions about her for now.” For the most part, Midoriya was so distracted in what he was saying that he hadn’t noticed the expressions on Uraraka’s parent’s faces’. When he had finally seen them though, he realized that he was sounding rather bold. “I-I mean, it’s best to always ask her directly, you know” he said nervously.

Once her parents heard him say this, smiles grew on their faces, much to Midoriya’s confusion. “My my, I’ve never heard such profound statements from a boy your age,” the mother spoke, grabbing a hold of her husband's hand. “I appreciate how well you think and feel about Uraraka. To be honest, I’d have been fine knowing if you had some feelings for her, but that’s very apparently not the case. Thank you for reassuring us, I mean we’re just two parents that just miss our daughter and wish for the best for her.”

Midoriya smiled back at them, happy to hear them express their acceptance of him, but happier to have gotten through the conversation already. Uravity was still sound asleep in his arms, slightly adjusting her head every couple of minutes.

All was well until Midoriya noticed that Mr. Uraraka was still eyeing him, as if he still had something to say. A few moments later, Midoriya’s suspicions had come true.

“Even if it’s not with our daughter… you can still share anything else with us, you know.” he said, taking another lax sip of his coffee from his mug. “You looked pretty alarmed when we first started talking about this… Uraraka may be out of the question, but perhaps there’s someone else…?”

Oh, someone _else_ definitely came to mind. Still, Midoriya was preparing to negate this new conversation, but suddenly Uravity started to stir up in his arms. Gradually her low groans grew louder and louder, until she was almost to the point of crying.

Midoriya was confused, and felt a little helpless, but soon Uraraka’s mom was reaching over to grab the baby. “Guess it’s feeding time,” she said, bringing Uravity up into her chest and walking down the hallway into a room.

Disappointed because he enjoyed feeling Uravity’s warmth on his chest, but also glad because the baby had distracted her dad, Midoriya was about to excuse himself before more questions could be asked about his personal relationships. He ended up not having to do anything at all though because Uraraka and Iida had finally come back inside from their chat outside, and filled their seats next to Midoriya once again.

Once seated, Uraraka immediately shot a menacing glare into her father’s eyes. “The walls are thin dad… I heard how you been interrogating innocent little Deku,” she said, squinting.

Instead of getting intimidated, the father laughed lightly. “It wasn’t anything too bad. Besides he’s still fine right? Wasn't fazed by anything I said, he’s tough.”

Midoriya smiled weakly at the compliment.

“Still, there was no reason to be like that with him. I think you even scared off the confidence Iida and I have been trying to help him build.” she responded, crossing her arms. “It was hard enough anyways to get Midoriya to talk about anything other than business and lessons.”

“Ah, I see. My bad, Deku. I’m just trying to show you that I care, you know? As a father, I see you and Iida as some distant sons of mine now. And like I mentioned earlier, we’re all human, so we can’t _deny_ that eventually, all of you will-”

“I’m only fifteen!” Uraraka exclaimed, her face growing a faint tint of red. Midoriya threw his head into his hands, unable to keep up with this persistent talk about _those_ types of things, and Iida was surprisingly remaining quiet.

A heartful laugh erupted from Mr. Uraraka’s mouth, and he wiped away some small tears that ha formed in the ducts of his eyes. “Alright, alright. I’ll stop now, for real,” he continued laughing. “I just wanna reassure all three of you that we care about you, and are willing to talk with you about anything.”

Now Iida spoke up. “We appreciate that, sir. Thank you very much,” he finished saying with a slight bow. Midoriya also bowed, but Uraraka kept squinting at her dad. 

“You just like to poke your nose into anything, huh.” she said, looking away. Deep down though, she was glad that her father was getting along with her two best friends, and was also expressing such intimacy to them.She thought especially about Midoriya, who was now leaning against the couch with a contempt and relaxed expression. This type of environment was something he definitely needed during this vacation. Not that he couldn’t get the same attention from his father-like figure, All Might, but well, you can’t just hug or speak with a king whenever you’d like. 

The sound of a closing door came from the hallway, and some footsteps followed afterwards. Uraraka’s mom appeared in the doorway of the hallway, and began to talk. “Well, That’s the last of Uravity that we’ll be seeing tonight. Little thing drank to her heart’s content, and now she’s sleeping it off until who knows when,” she announced.

Midoriya pouted a little, which was obviously seen by Uraraka.

“Don’t worry, Deku. You can say goodbye to her before you leave, even though she can’t say it back.” she assured him. 

“I’d like that,” Midoriya responded. He hadn’t held her for any absurd amount of time, but it was enough to create a bond with the little baby. He looked forward to visiting and seeing her growth as the years go on by.

So after all of that, the night continued to progress slowly. When everyone began to yawn one after another, it signaled that it was time for the boy’s to continue their journey.

Outside, Iida had informed Uraraka that there would be more patrols and soldiers around the village, due to some incident that he didn’t explain. He wanted Uraraka to know what was going on, but didn’t want to scare her or her family.

It was agreed that a guard would be left with her while Midoriya and Iida traveled further ahead, until they circled back for her in three days. With those plans set and explained, Iida and Midoriya began to dismiss themselves, thanking their hosts for the hospitality, food, and unexpected relationship advice.

“Thank you for everything again,” Midoriya said, bowing once more to their hosts.

“Likewise, thank you for letting us get to know you two. It was our pleasure.”

Uraraka then took Midoriya by the arm. “You want to see Uravity before you go, right?” she asked him.

“Ah, right.” Midoriya responded, letting himself be led to the room by Uraraka.

She opened the door, and walked over to the wall on her right. Midoriya followed, and then was able to make out the shape of a crib. They had left the lights off because disrupting a sleeping baby would be a sin greater than many others, and Midoriya was contempt with just seeing Uravity anyways. 

“Peaceful…” he said, gently tapping one of Uravity’s hands.

Uraraka just observed, resting her arms on the edge of the crib. “I’m surprised she had taken a little nap in your arms,” she whispered. “Supposedly it's difficult for my dad to even hold her, yet she liked you immediately. I guess it can’t be helped, you have that effect on almost everyone.”

Midoriya quietly scoffed. “I’d like to think that she liked me because of my amazing baby-holding skills. It was my first time, you know?”

“Ohh, really?” Uraraka asked. Suddenly she gripped the crib a little harder. “Somehow… I feel uneasy now.”

Midoriya was visibly offended. “I was more than capable to hold her anyways!” he said a little louder. The change in tone had made Uravity briefly move, silencing them both.

During the silence, Midoriya wondered if he should ask Uraraka about Iida. They were both alone in the room, away from any curious ears. He figured it was best to find out as soon as possible, since he could figure out some way to help them if they ever had problems, but, they were also about to be separated for a few days. If he’d ask her now, she’d probably end up thinking about Iida, whether it be because they had feelings for each other or not.

In the end, he figured he wouldn’t ask. It’d be painful to think about someone you’re not near, right?

“Iida is probably waiting in the carriage now,” Midoriya said, pulling his hand away from Uravity.

“Right,” Uraraka agreed. Together, they turned to exit the room. “Hey… I haven’t really said it yet, but thank you for coming,” Uraraka said, catching Midoriya by surprise.

“Of course,” he responded. “It was fun being here, really. I needed something like… this.”

Uraraka smiled. It seems that her previous thoughts were correct. “I thought so. What my parents said is true, too. You can think of them as your own parents.”

Midoriya looked at her and observed her bright and stunning grin. He closed his eyes, unable to take in such a scene. “I will,” he said, rubbing his eyes.

Within a few minutes, Midoriya and Iida were standing outside of their carriage now, ready to board as Uraraka and her parents saw them off. They bowed once, and Iida said, “We’ll return in three days. See you until then.”

Uraraka nodded with agreement, and then the two boys climbed into their carriage, ready to sleep whilst they traveled to the next destination.

-

A few hours later into the night, Muscular and his companion were also on their way out of town, choosing to walk along a path that wasn’t visible to the main roads.

“If they’re following us, there’s no doubt they’ll think we’re suspicious because we’re walking in such a hidden path…”

Muscular growled. “Just focus on the sound of your own footsteps, idiot.”

After spending some time traveling around the village, they had decided to meet the other person who was in on their plan, a _man_ that would ensure things go smoothly from now on, despite having made their target and the village patrols seem weary of them. 

They had every right to, honestly, but _that_ part of the plan wasn’t happening right now. It’ll come, eventually, and then the suspicions that the green-haired brat had would come true, though he’d probably be dead before he realized it.

Ah, the thoughts of bodies being smashed, bones being broken, and blood being shed made Muscular shiver with anticipation. He was a _ching_ to be a part of some action, to play around since he hadn’t been in combat for awhile. But the boss specifically ordered him to not raise any suspicion during this task, assuming that any accidents would cause all of the patrols to be alert, which was something they didn’t want.

_‘Let them think they’re doing well, that way their guard will go down, and then we can finally…’_

The instructions echoed in Muscular’s head. He had no doubt that the plan would succeed, due to his bosses’ excellent intuition, but still, there's no point in slithering around and doing all of this ‘behind-the-scenes’ work if they could wipe everyone out before Yuuei even saw it coming. Their only major obstacle was that king… All Might.

Anger bloomed in Muscular’s mind, and some words escaped from him. “I can definitely take out that over-hyped king… then everything would be much more easier… and fun…” he mumbled to himself.

“He’s… significantly stronger,” his companion spoke quietly.

Unaware that he had spoken aloud, Muscular suddenly turned to his companion. “You think so?” he asked, quickly extending his arm out and grabbing the short man by his neck. “Well between me and All Might, who do you think could snap your neck the fastest?” HIs grip tightened.

The short man attempted to wriggle free, gasping while his legs and arms flailed around in vain. Before Muscular could get an answer for his question, the two were interrupted by the sounds of horses and a carriage being drawn. Immediately Muscular let go and put a hand over his companions mouth, quieting him although the latter was desperate for a breath of air.

Muscular kept listening attentively, and soon it sounded like the carriage had stopped.

‘ _Fuck_ ’, Muscular thought. Had they been following and found them after all?

“Sorry sir, it seems that the horses are too fatigued to continue”, a voice spoke. It sounded vaguely familiar…

“Yes sir, I’ll feed them something immediately and get us going as soon as possible,” they said, accompanied by the sound of carrots being chewed by the horses.

While the man was attending the horses, he heard the rustling of leaves nearby. Attentive, he called out, “Anyone there?” The rustling of the leaves had stopped, and a burdened silence had spread among the environment.

“Oi, it’s me, Muscular!” A voice suddenly called out, and from the bushes to the man’s right, Muscular did, in fact, pop out.

The man sighed with relief. “Ah, Muscular, good fellow. Walking off a big meal at this time of the night, I assume?”

Muscular laughed. “You know it. You were right, the village succeeded in filling our bellies to our hearts content, and all with the finest food I’ve ever tried in my life.”

The man smiled. “I’m glad. I told you it was worth the wait.”

Muscular nodded. “It really was. This village did a lot more than just fill my stomach though… it also helped with something else…”

The man looked intrigued. “Oh really? What else did yo-”

Before the man could finish his sentence, his head was already pummeled into the shape of a raisin before the fellow could even comprehend was had happened in that second. Blood promptly ran down the man’s leg and drained into the dirt as his body also fell to the ground with a loud thud.

“Oi! What’s going on-” the person inside spoke, but he too had a similar fate to face. 

Muscular grabbed a hold of his limbs first. “Oh, nothing.” he responded, as he twisted both of the man’s arms. Before the man could even muster a scream, Muscular had also punched his head, generating the loud and nasty sound of a skull being crushed. Muscular let go and let the man’s body fall onto the ground as lifeless as the dirt he was now laying on.

Muscular’s companion watched from the bushes, _terrified_ of what he had just witnessed. 

Muscular stood still, taking in deep breaths while the extra muscle fibers on his arms began to retract. He noticed that his companion was watching him. “Sorry… you got me a little too _excited_ , “ Muscular said, shivering. He glanced at the bodies below him. “Ugh… now we have to clean this up…” he said to himself, stepping out of the pool of blood at his feet. He paused for a moment, and thought about what to do. “Actually… these are pretty generic kills, right? We’ll just leave them as a surprise… hahaha…. what do you think?”

“M-Muscular s-sir, the boss specifically t-told us not to,”

“I don’t give a rat’s ass anymore.” Muscular responded. “Let’s get going before anyone else comes.”

The short man took small steps, trembling almost so hard that it made it difficult to walk.

“You lead the way, and walk faster.” Muscular demanded, giving the short man a push.

Like that, the two disappeared from the scene, leaving the gift of two dead bodies and a while investigation to the base that was supposed to be protecting the village.

An hour later, they were relaying information to a strange looking man, the _‘him_ ’ they had been referring to earlier. Once all the appropriate information was given out, the strange looking man blinked twice and then seemingly disappeared into the night, only able to be identified by the sounds of the breaths that were coming from him.

“Lucky bastard…” Muscular said to himself, walking along another path while his companion trailed behind him quietly.

\--

“What I’m saying is, old hag, we don’t need to be bothered with ‘plans’ or ‘set-ups’ to catch these villains. If any of those bastards even _think_ of doing shit like that in our kingdom, I’ll **kill** them!”

The queen listened to her son finish his mini-rant and sighed. 

“Bakugou, we’ve told you to refrain from speaking like that-” The king spoke up, but was promptly interrupted.

“I'LL SPEAK HOW I WANT TO, OLD MAN!!” Bakugou exclaimed, slamming his hands down on the arms of his throne. The king shied away and leaned into his own throne.

Endeavor just looked upon the three with no expression on his face, not feeling surprised nor intimidated. “It’s reassuring to know that you’re so… willing to take matters into your own hands, but this isn’t just some _regular_ villain group we’re dealing with here… and as the kingdom with the most information on them, it’d best to-”

“Oh, sure, I’m positive that if something did pop up here, you’d be the first to respond huh? That’s bullshit.” Bakugo spoke up, sounding skeptical.

“That’s why I’m asking for my troops to…”

“We already said no.” Bakugo crossed his arms. “Besides, it’s not like you guys are the only ones capable of protecting and fighting.”

The queen raised her head. “He’s right… Endeavor. Out of all our neighboring kingdoms… we’re the only ones with the less amount of crimes and villain activity. I’d prefer to keep it that way, instead of inviting such activities due to your involvement in our kingdom.”

Endeavor sighed. “I understand where you’re coming from… but I didn’t travel here to merely ‘warn’ you. Something big is stirring up, and I want the least amount of casualties to come from it.”

Bakugo scoffed. “Mind your own damn business, I’ll leave you with that. You, stupid-hair,” he called out, looking at Todoroki. “You ain’t gonna beg with your father?”

Todoroki looked up and gave him a menacing glare, not because he was offended from the comment about his hair, but because Bakugo had called Endeavor his ‘father’. Bakugo moved around slightly in his throne. “As far as your concerned, my thoughts do not concern you,” Todoroki responded calmly.

Bakugo looked annoyed. “Oi, what do you mean they don’t concern me? Are you underestimating me?” 

Todoroki remained silent, which pissed Bakugo off even more. 

Seeing that Bakugou was distracted the queen spoke up again. “We regret to announce this, but we dismiss your proposal and your plans to integrate your soldiers into our kingdom. We have been dealing with our own events and tragedies since the founding of this kingdom, and we choose to remain like so.”

The king gave her a small worried look, but also turned to Endeavor and nodded, agreeing with her. Bakugo was still staring angrily at Todoroki.

“... I see.” Endeavor finally responded. 

“You’re welcomed to rest in our castle until you are prepared to leave.” The queen added.

Endeavor nodded. “Thank you for the offer, but we will be traveling back immediately following the closing of his meeting.”

“...Very well.” The queen said. “Well then, this meeting is dismissed. We’ll see you off shortly.”

Not very long after, Todoroki and Endeavor were back in their carriage, beginning their journey back to their kingdom. 

Endeavor was very obviously pissed off, and Todoroki didn’t bother to speak about what had just happened. Still, Endeavor spoke up anyways. “Those damn fools… I even came out of my way to see them in _person_ , and they have the audacity to reject me to my face. Someday....” he trailed off, looking at Todoroki. “I hope you ready for tonight.”

With that lone sentence, he had gotten Todoroki’s complete attention. “I… thought you wanted to get back to our kingdom as soon as possible…” Todoroki said. Truthfully he was still terribly sore and fatigued from last night’s training, but he didn’t dare reveal that to Endeavor.

“Doesn’t matter. You promised.” Endeavor said, grinning slightly. 

Todoroki felt disgusted. He already knew that Endeavor was going to take his anger out on him, and he wasn’t sure his body would be able to keep up with that much trauma. He sighed eventually, showing his reluctant agreement.

With that hostile tension in the air, the carriage carried onwards for most the night, eventually stopping at the place they were at the prior night, in Yuuei.

Endeavor practically jumped out the carriage, meanwhile Todoroki slightly struggled to get his body out. The ground was fresh and the air was cold, but soon the area would be lit up and set ablaze by the destruction that's implemented into the left side of his body.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Todoroki uwu hang in there  
> baby uravity you have my heart  
> rip random people & their hungry abandoned horses  
> SHEIT was I excited to write Bakugou
> 
> told you it was long lol. Thank you for bearing with me! Over these last two weeks, I've finally set out a concrete plot that includes ALL of my indulgences   
> laughs quietly  
> and hopefully they turn out to be your indulgences too!  
> Midoriya's week-long vacation turned out to be like a here-everything-you-need-to-know-for-the-future-of-the-fanfic infomercial, but hopefully you're enjoying the slow pace and live for Iida/Uraraka/Midoriya moments.  
> However I *am* already itching for moments between our two beloved bazzoies.... maybe next week?
> 
>  
> 
> that being said, next time!:  
> The Royal Ball, finally??


	13. Moving Along

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Midoriya & co finally return from the seven-day long vacation, eager to take on their duties in the castle. Meanwhile, Todoroki has also arrived to his own, and struggles with keeping true to his 'promise' with Endeavor. Peace reigns through Yuuei as always but a mysterious accident has started to waver that peace, and the presence to two stalkers remains unknown.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Welcome back!!  
> Oh man it's really been two weeks... BUT that let me proof read a chapter for the first time so I hope this one sounds much better than the last ones :') Things are finally 'moving along', this chapter follows three people/parties, so I hope everything is making sense!

“So you just want me to keep following them?”

A cool breeze traveled through the two men that were conversing, causing both to shiver slightly.The man who was asked the question nodded, and then slowly inhaled some of his cigar. “For now. We just need to confirm that it’s the same brat from the castle that foiled some of our plans a while back. Apparently they’re going to travel for three more days and then return to the castle. Is that gonna be too hard, chameleon?”

“Tch. Of course not,” the chameleon responded. 

“Good. Now, did Muscular mention anything else?”

“Nothing in particular. Said he’s going to meet back up with the boss earlier than he had expected, due to some huge target he has on his back or something.”

“Mm… He’s returning to Calabasas so soon? That meathead really can’t do anything right,” the man replied. He took a moment to observe the rings on his right hand, fidgeting with one in particular. 

“Well, I don’t know if this’ll sound like good or bad news to you, but you won’t particularly be alone for this mission. Toga,” he suddenly called out. From the shadows of the trees and bushes. a young-looking blonde girl emerged from the shadows. The chameleon immediately straightened out into a fighting stance. 

“Relax,” the man said, “Introduce yourself, Toga.”

Toga nodded. “I’m Toga!” she said enthusiastically, extending a hand out to the chameleon for a handshake. The chameleon didn’t budge though, he knew better. “Aw, relax. I won't hurt ya, not yet at least,” she added. 

The man spoke up again. “She’s essential to our plan. Tell him about your quirk.”

“Right. My quirk let’s me turn into other people,” she said casually, bending down and playing with a leaf that was on the ground.

The chameleon had let his guard down for a second once he saw her crouch over, and in that second, she suddenly sprung up and flung herself at him with a knife. She had succeeded in getting a drop of his blood on her knife, and jumped away before the chameleon could retaliate. 

“The fuck was that for-”

Before the chameleon could finish his sentence, Toga was licking the blood on her knife. Almost immediately, her clothes began to melt away and she began to transform into…

“No way…” The chameleon said, straightening out. He was now looking at… himself.

“Yup.” she said in the same voice as him. After a minute or so, a grey liquid began to ooze out from her, and the chameleon stepped back once again. “Oh, don’t mind this. The duration of my transformation depends on the amount of blood ingested,” she said, putting on some clothes that the man had thrown to her. “Say, chameleon, wanna help me and let me stab ya again?”

The chameleon stepped back, unsure if she was being serious or not.

“Toga, that’s enough,” the man said in a stern voice. “Anyways, chameleon, your objective is to follow them to confirm that it’s the brat we’re looking for, and get into the castle and _obtain_ some blood from one of the workers there for Toga. You can wait until someone from there exits the castle and then kidnap them, or do it while you’re in the castle, it doesn’t matter. As long as it’s done and you aren’t caught or suspected. Toga will be following along behind you, she already knows what to do.”

Chameleon thought for a moment before he responded. “That’s a lot more responsibilities that I was told about a minute ago. I assume the pay will increase along with them?”

“Course’,” the man said. “The boss man told us he’s got a lot of antsy buyers waiting for some more ‘subjects’. This is all part of a grand plan, so do your job correctly and soon you’ll have more money than you’d know what to do with.”

“Heyyyy, since he’s getting paid more, does that mean I get more too?” Toga asked, slashing around with her knife.

“Yeah, I’ll let you stab a lot more people real soon,” he assured her.

Her face suddenly lit up. “Good enough with me,” she said, returning to her practice swings. 

“Well, that’s all you gotta know. I expect to get a successful report from the both of you soon, alright? You know where to find me.”

The chameleon nodded. “Let’s go then… uh… Toga.”

“Yes!” she said enthusiastically. 

The two walked off into the night again, meanwhile their leader, the man, walked in the opposite direction, fidgeting with his ring once again.

-

When their carriage stopped besides Uraraka’s house, Midoriya noticed that she was already sitting outside holding Uravity in her arms. The atmosphere in front of her house was great. It really seemed quiet and peaceful since the main section of the village wasn’t too close. Uraraka was pretty occupied trying to keep the baby entertained, but once she saw the carriage appear from the mirage of trees and vegetation, her eyes grew wide and she started to approach it until it stopped near her house. Iida was the one who stepped out first, and heard Uraraka exclaim, “I-Iida! Deku! Has it been three days already?!?”

Deku finished stepping off the the carriage and heard Uraraka question their arrival. He gave her a brief puzzled look, and then turned to Iida, who looked equally worried. “Uraraka, have you somehow lost track of time? Did something happen while we were gone?”

Uraraka fixed her expression and closed her eyes while shaking her head. Uravity began to squirm in her hands. She must’ve heard Midoriya and recognized him standing near Uraraka, because she extended her arms out in his direction. Slightly surprised, but not bothered, Uraraka handed Uravity over to Midoriya, to which he accepted immediately. She continued to look at the two as Midoriya let Uravity snuggle up in his arms. “No it just… felt really fast.” she said, stroking Uravity’s cheek.

“Well, time flies when you’re having fun, they say.” Midoriya said whilst admiring Uravity. “Without you, it felt rather slow for us,” he informed her. Beside him, Iida made a small ‘hmph’ sound, and Deku began to stutter out, “N-No, I mean, It was plenty of fun and despite missing you, it was relaxing having it feel like we had all the time in the world.” He looked at Iida in hope of seeing a better expression, and Iida did.

“Really?” she asked. “Did you get to do all the things you wanted to do?”

Midoriya nodded. “Honestly the real priority was just to eat some seafood. I had totally forgotten to ask your parents for their recommendations, but sneaky Iida did at some point during our visit, so we went to all of those. For the most part, we were mainly sightseeing. I got to see a lot of historical locations that I learned about during my Yuuei lessons.” He paused to coo at Uravity, who was smiling immensely at him. His heart ached. “Nonetheless, we’re tired out of our minds and are ready to go back.”

Uraraka laughed at their interactions. “Ah… I see. Well, my things are all ready. Let me just get my parents out here and then we can be on our way.”

“Alright,” Iida nodded, now also turning his attention to Uravity. 

The two boys continued to play with Uravity until a patrolling soldier began to approach them on a horse. Midoriya noticed right away. “A messenger?” he asked, obersing the badge on the upper left torso of the soldier, which indicated that he was indeed a messenger.

Iida heard him, but didn’t respond nor acknowledge what Midoriya said. Instead, he gave the soldier a stern look. The soldier then proceeded to leave almost as quickly as he had arrived, and it didn’t take more than a few short seconds for him to disappear into the forest.

Midoriya now faced Iida immediately. “What was that?”

Iida returned his attention to Uravity. “What was what?” he asked back.

Midoriya stared at him, unamused. “Don’t.”

Iida shrugged. “No idea.”

Midoriya was planning to question him again, but Uraraka had come back out, accompanied by her parents. 

“It’s good to see you two boys again so soon!” Mr. Uraraka boasted, giving Iida a big hug, and then hugging Midoriya carefully because of Uravity. “Even _if_ it’s because you came to pick up our pumpkin. Are you going straight back from here?”

“That’s the plan.” Iida responded. “If all goes well, we should get there by sun down.”

“I see... well we won’t be keeping you two any longer. We’ve already said our goodbyes far too many times,” Uraraka’s mother told them, throwing an arm around Uraraka. “I’m expecting to get letters from all three of you, y’hear?”

Uraraka began to whine. “Moooomm, I’ve told you that it’s dangerous to send letters in and out of the castle frequently.”

Iida then raised a hand halfway into the air. “Actually, it’s fine, Uraraka. With the results that Sato gave us about the messenger system, it seems that there's very little time and chance of letters being stolen or intercepted from the messengers.” he informed them.

“See? Everything works out in the end,” Mr. Uraraka spoke again. “Now really, if you wanna get there by sun down, we’ll see you off now.”

“Right,” said Midoriya, lightly kissing Uravity before he handed her off to Uraraka’s mom. The baby whined a little, but got quiet once again in her mother's arms. “I’ll be back soon, Uravity.” he told her.

Iida dismissed himself first and climbed into the carriage, followed by Midoriya. Uraraka simply waved in place of her last goodbye, and then also climbed in. 

“Stay safe and work hard!” Both parents said after them. 

Just like that, Midoriya’s week long vacation was over, and the three were on their way back to their home and duties to face whatever dared to challenge them.

-

Back at the castle, Ojiro knocked on All Might’s door and was greeted with a distressed, “Come in.”

Ojiro continued to walk in. “Apologies for the interruption your majesty, but we have some more news from the base near Fari,” he said, walking over to All Might and giving him a file filled with papers. 

“All of this?” All Might asked, beginning to look through the papers.

“Apparently.” Ojiro responded, bowing once. “Not much was said along with these papers. It seems that the author only thought it important to add ‘‘We are still investigating for further details’.

All Might sighed. The guest that he had at the moment, court member Aizawa, also began to ask his fair share of questions. “Has the village still not been notified?”

Ojiro shook his head. “It seems that they haven’t. I assume that the base thinks its better to prevent suspicion and fear by not announcing what happened. The village is being kept in the dark about all of this.”

Aizawa clicked his teeth. “That’s probably a result from them being encouraged to ‘keep the peace’ no matter what circumstance, All Might…”

“I see nothing wrong with their judgement.” All Might commented quickly. “Have you heard about Midoriya?”

Ojiro shook his head again. “Not since the last report, no. I believe they should be arriving back today though, if the last report was accurate.”

All Might sighed again.

Aizawa got up from his chair. “Well, I’ll be looking into past cases that have results like these and try to make connections. I trust you’ll come and brief me about that new report,” Aizawa said, turning to leave the room.

“Of course,” All Might responded, looking back at the reports. Once Aizawa had left, All Might turned to Ojiro. “Ojiro, could you find and bring me a map of that area?”

“Right away, your highness” said Ojiro, leaving almost immediately to complete the task.

_‘Please stay safe, Midoriya boy.”_ he thought. ‘ _Iida… do what you must to prevent him from knowing…’_

_-_

A few hours into the carriage ride, Midoriya began to lose his patience with Iida. “If you don’t tell me, I’m going to cry.” He resorted to saying, taking an angry biteful of an apple.

“I already told you, there’s nothing going on.” Iida responded, crossing his arms and closing his eyes. “Now let me sleep.”

Midoriya stomped his foot down.”No no, no ‘sleeping’ here until you tell me what that messenger was going to say, and why you turned him away.”

Iida cursed in his thoughts. Midoriya was being far too perceptive about the messenger that had appeared close to their departure from Uraraka’s house. The messenger hadn’t even been in range long enough for Midoriya to suspect that something was going on, but it turned out he was, and now Midoriya wouldn’t drop the topic. Of course, as his personal guard and servant, Iida wanted to inform him about the accident that had occured the night before, but was ordered to keep it from him. Despite feeling bad for keeping something from his prince and best friend, Iida continued to ignore his threats. Iida’s head began to fall back further and further. 

Annoyed, but respectful enough to know that Iida really needed to sleep, Midoriya finally backed down and sat angrily in his seat. 

Uraraka looked at him confused. “What's going on, Midoriya?” she asked in a small and quiet tone. She figured the sweeter she’d sound, the less tense Midoriya would get.

He sighed and looked at her. “It’s just…” he thought back to the guard they had left with her, “The guard we left with you… did he tell you anything?”

Uraraka thought back. “Mm, no, not really. We’d really just converse about absent-minded things when he joined us to eat. Why?”

Midoriya let out another sigh. So Iida hadn’t even told her about the suspicious man they had run into after all. Should he tell her now, even though it might just get her to panic and get worried for her family? For Uravity?

“It’s just…” he began to say. Initially, he had determined that it would be better to keep the little information that he knew from her, but then he began to think about how the whole reason he was angry was _because_ Iida was also keeping something from him. Midoriya then decided he that wouldn’t do the same to Uraraka. “Before we met up with you, Iida and I were walking around the food stalls in the middle of the village. It was there that I,” he paused to gulp, thinking back to the the monstrosity of a man he had ran into, “I bumped into a really scary-looking guy. I mean, Uraraka, my whole _being_ felt afraid, and the uneasiness he ingrained in me didn’t go away until a long while after.”

Uraraka looked alarmed. “Seriously?” she asked quietly, looking over at Iida to make sure he was asleep before she spoke again. “Ah, is that why a guard stayed with me?” she asked.

Midoriya nodded.

“Oh…well, that makes more sense. I thought you guys left the guard because Iida had really over-worried about me…” she began to play with her fingers, which was noticed by Midoriya. 

‘Why is she playing with her fingers?’ Midoriya questioned in his thoughts. Usually, he himself did so when he felt nervous or embarrassed, but why would Uraraka feel like that right now? It didn’t make much sense, but suddenly that strange conversation that he had with Uraraka’s father suddenly came to mind...

“Honestly I did notice that there were more patrols wandering around after you two had left… but that happened 3 days ago, right?” she asked, snapping Midoriya out of his mini-trance. “I haven’t heard anything yet, and trust me, if something _did_ happen, the whole village would know within five minutes.”

“Seriously?” Midoriya asked.

“Yeah,” she confirmed, “Actually, it seemed like you were the talk of the town.” she added.

Wait, what?

“Wait, what?” Midoriya asked. “ _I_ was?”

Uraraka shrugged. “Apparently. I kept hearing about a ‘freckled green-haired’ boy. Figured that was you.”

Midoriya shivered. People had been talking about him? Now his curiosity, and ego, were spiking. “...What else were they saying?”

Uraraka giggled. “Sorry, I can’t really say. I didn’t pay much attention to anyone’s conversations.”

Midoriya was let down. “Oh, okay.”

She laughed again. “Really though, I think Iida’s telling the truth.”

“... I guess so.” Midoriya replied. He let the case rest, for now, just because of Uraraka. Time would tell, though, if his suspicions were correct.

-

At around 6 in the afternoon that day, Endeavor and Todoroki’s carriage has finally pulled into the main gate of their castle. In a few minutes time, Todoroki found himself knocking and entering one of the lounges near his room. “I’m home… mother,” he announced, kneeling on one knee and bowing his head forward.

Rei, who was lying on a couch reading a novel, looked at him with joy and stood to welcome her son. 

“Oh Shoto, how I’ve missed you these past couple of days,” she said beginning to walk over to him. “I trust you enjoyed your first trip outside of the castle…” she trailed off, but paused once Todoroki had lifted his head. Shallow yet jagged cuts sporadically decorated his face, as well as dark spots that gave away bruises and tender skin. “Oh…” she said next, bringing a hand up to her face. If Todoroki was this marked up on his head, she could only imagine how horrible the rest of his body looked. “Shoto...I….I…” she began to say, but Todoroki stood and held her arm.

“Don’t worry… mom… they’ll go away... like they always do.” He told her, standing straight and walking over to embrace her. “It was fun, really. I’ll tell you all about it.”

He was doing his best to reassure her that everything would be fine, but even yet, Rei couldn’t stop the flood of tears that were beginning to leak from the corners of her eyes. 

-

Meanwhile in the All Might manor…

“Oh how I’ve missed you!” Midoriya exclaimed, jumping onto his bed. The first thing he did was take in a deep inhale of the aromas from his bedsheets, exhaling eventually with a huge grin on his face. “There’s truly nothing like one’s own scent.” he breathed, snuggling further into the sheets.

Iida laughed. “You _wish_ you smelled like that. I’m sure they had just finished changing the sheets,” he said, placing some of Midoriya’s trunks on the floor. He then proceeded to call for Adeline and Alice, who were patiently waiting outside the door. 

They rushed in once their were called, and in unison said, “Welcome back, Your Highness Midoriya.” Midoriya thanked them, and then they began to unpack the clothes from the trunk immediately, sorting out the clothes that could be put away immediately and the other clothes that had to be washed.

“Be careful girls,” Iida warned. “His highness didn’t really bother with baths this time around…”

The girls giggled, and Midoriya shot an annoyed glance at Iida. “Feeling alive and cheery now that we’re back home, huh?”

Iida nodded. “There’s nothing like the safety of a castle,” he responded calmly. “Plus, you owe me for all of the harsh accusations you made back in the carriage.”

Midoriya groaned. He was right, Uraraka helped confirmed that Iida was serious about there being nothing wrong, despite Midoriya pushing him to say something. Midoriya didn’t feel bad, but hadn’t apologized yet either. They had all actually ended up falling asleep for most of the carriage ride.

“I’m sorry for making false accusations about you,” he mumbled, beginning to sit up in his bed. 

“Apology accep-.... Well… actually… I’m pretty hurt that my prince thought I’d be adamant about lying to him… I don’t know if I could ever get over that kind of distrust between us…”

“Fine by me.” Midoriya responded coldly, standing up and walking over to his desk now.

Iida chuckled. “Alright. Well I’m going to check the workload that’s been accumulating on my desk over the course of the week. I trust you’ll do the same?”

“Yeah, yeah.” Midoriya said, observing some things that were also placed on his desk. 

Iida turned to leave the room, but hesitated before walking out. “Ah, I almost forgot,” he said, reaching into his tunic and walking over to Midoriya. He pulled out a thin envelope, and handed it to the prince. “You know who,” was all Iida said before he put the envelope on the desk and began to take his leave once again. 

Midoriya briefly glanced at it and realized who it was from, and thanked before Iida before he had left. He didn’t touch the envelope though, preferring to wait and read it after the aids had finished their tasks and left. They were still on the first trunk and had yet to go through two more, so it seemed that he wouldn’t be able to read it until a while later. He considered asking to help them, but he remembered that one of the tasks high on his priority list was depending on others, including his aids. He decided to walk around the castle instead, stopping by to greet Mei and see if Uraraka needed help unpacking.

As Midoriya paraded around the halls, he couldn’t help but question why All Might hadn’t called him in for a meeting yet. All Might had done so before he left on his trip, so he guessed that a similar meeting would’ve also taken place as soon as he came back. This must’ve meant that All Might was busy.

Also, Midoriya supposed that they _had_ just barely arrived, so many All Might wanted to give him some time to relax and unwind before talking about the trip again. But then again, if All Might really was just busy, Midoriya wondered with what.

Thinking back to how the trip went overall, Midoriya also couldn’t help but remember about the dream he had on the third day. He hadn’t really planned to think about it so soon, but the lack of duties he had at the moment urged him to wonder about it. 

During the trip, after the whole event had happened, he decided to push away those pressing matters because he wanted to compare the dream to the previous one he had, which was written in a notebook back here at the castle. He supposed that he should take a look at it right now and begin analyzing… they had barely arrived but it’s not like they had been doing much during the trip. He was pretty exhausted from riding around in the carriage and socializing with everyone he had met outside of the castle walls, but his mind had enough time to relax and unwind. 

Midoriya turned around and began walking back to his room. He figured that the little persistent voice in his head was right, he had vacationed and relaxed enough and so it was time to start working right ahead.

In that instant he suddenly began to remember all of the tasks he really _did_ have ahead of him besides analysing his dreams. He had to present the communication tests from Sato’s base to All Might when they’d eventually meet, and then planned to inquire about the Flamuralis and etiquette lessons that the court had told him about last week. There was also that whole _royal ball_ thing that was going to happen in a mere… three weeks. And who might he possibly meet again at that ball?

“Ughhhh,” Midoriya groaned, grabbing his head with both hands. He really have a lot to do, yet just a few minutes ago he was feeling content and unconcerned enough to go waste time with Mei or Uraraka. Defeated by his thoughts, he walked even faster to his room, prepared to pick up the letter from his mother and the other papers on his desk to take them to his office. He figured he’d spend the rest of the day there if no one needed him for anything.

“...You didn’t look like that when I last left you,” someone suddenly said, making Midoriya jump.

He turned and saw that it was Iida, and sighed. “It seems that I have a lot more to do than I thought, is all,” he responded, dropping his hands from his head.

Iida chuckled. “It’s hard coming back to so much after having done nothing for so long, huh? You’d be frightened to see the state that my office is in right now…” he said, adjusting his glasses. “Nothing we can’t tackle though, right?”

Midoriya nodded. “Of course, all these small things and tasks are just stepping stones for my true goals,” he said with glistening eyes, “but still, f I would’ve known things that things would be like this once we got back, I would’ve spent more time sleeping and eating while we were out.”

“Well, I _did_ often try to remind you that the whole trip was dedicated to you and relaxing, but I should’ve known that you kept ignoring that whole aspect.”

“Guess _you_ didn’t try hard enough.”

Iida sighed, but then started to smirk. “I think you were too busy ignoring me the first two days because you were too focused on your _friend_.”

Midoriya looked puzzled. “Huh? What friend-”

Shoto Todoroki. _That_ friend.

Midoriya started to blush now, understanding that Iida was teasing him. “T-That was uncalled for,” he stammered out. “But, thinking back to it, that really was _some_ coincidence, wasn’t it? Just the day before… no… the night before… we had said our goodbyes, only to wind up meeting him again the next day.”

Iida suddenly paused after Midoriya said that, looking down and placing his right hand under his glasses. “Coincidence…” he began to say, “I think… not!” he said as he adjusted his glasses and extended his right hand out.

“Um… what are you pointing at?” Midoriya asked, confused.

“...Nothing,” Iida replied, beginning to walk again. 

It had succeeded in making Midoriya laugh though, which was the whole point.

“He said something like that too, back when we were at the inn,” Midoriya revealed. 

“Did he?”

“Yeah… actually, he said a lot of things that I didn’t really think much about back then…”

“Really?” Iida questioned. “Like what?”

Midoriya thought back for a split second. “Well, for one, he suddenly brought up my phys-”

Suddenly another cheery voice erupted behind them. “You guys! I didn’t expect to see you spending your time idly so soon after returning,” Uraraka said. “I expected the both of you to be knee-deep in reports and work by now.”

Midoriya moved to the side so Uraraka could walk in between them. “I had actually just finished telling Iida about all the work I just realized I have. I’m going back to my room and start on the dreams actually, until All Might finally meets with me,” he told them.

“I see… Wait, All Might hasn’t called you in yet?” she asked.

Midoriya shook his head. “I thought it was strange too, but I guess he’s just busy. Did you hear anything about what he might be doing, Iida?”

“Hmm… since we’ve arrived, no, I haven’t heard anything.” In his thoughts, he apologized to Midoriya.

“Well, guess we just have to wait and see.” Uraraka said. “Oh, speaking of which, do you want us to be with you when you analyze those dreams. Midoriya?”

“Oh,” Midoriya said. He hadn’t really thought of having them with him, but now that she mentioned it, Midoriya would much rather him them there to talk about it with him. After all, they probably know about him as much as he knows himself. “I mean, if you can, yeah, I’d like you to be there.”

“Definitely.” Iida said, meanwhile Uraraka nodded. 

“Anyways, what were you two talking about before?” she asked as they got closer to the room. 

“Ah, Midoriya was talking about the prince from Flamuralis, Todoroki.” Iida responded.

“Shoto…?” Uraraka asked. Suddenly, she grew a worried expression. “Oh man… I hope everything went well for him after he left… Endeavor isn’t really the type to express emotions, but something about him seemed off…”

Midoriya winced with guilt. He hadn’t forgotten the dull face that Todoroki had while he was being led out by the guards. “Yeah… I hope he’s well too…” Midoriya voiced out loud, shaking his head as they began to enter his room. Despite trying to ignore them, the thoughts about what happened to Todoroki the night they were caught in his castle resurfaced, and he was unwilling to think about what probably _had_ happened to Todoroki after he left.

-

“Deku…?” Rei asked, taking a sip of her tea. “That’s an odd name.”

Todoroki nodded. “I thought so too. I’m sure it’s just some alias that he thought of at the moment. I don’t blame him.” He relaxed and lay back in his chair, turning his head to observe his surroundings while he thought more about Deku.

The two were relaxing in one of their castle’s gardens now, enjoying a selection of tea that Fuyumi, the only daughter of all five Todoroki children, had received as a courting gift from some Count. Todoroki had brought his mother here to discuss the highlights of his trip in a calming environment, doing his best to distract her from thinking about Endeavor. With the obvious wounds on his face though, it was nearly impossible. Still, he kept trying.

“It was odd… within those next three days, we had met quite a lot. After we left their castle in the morning, I end up running into him later that day at our inn. It turns out he was also starting on some sort of trip.”

“Oh, is that so?”

Todoroki nodded once again. “We took a bath together and then he invited me to visit one of their kingdom’s bases, since he apparently had to take care of some business there.”

Rei stopped drinking from her teacup and stared at Todoroki’s unbruised eye. “You... _bathed_ with him?” She asked abruptly, setting down the cup.

Todoroki seemed unaware of what she was suggesting. “Yes, at the inn’s bath. It was different than the inn’s here, there were no private baths but I didn’t mind.”

Rei relaxed from her tense pose and picked up her teacup again. For some reason, she had gotten unnecessarily worried. “Oh, I see… and how was your time at the base? It’s sort of… odd that he invited you to one of their kingdom’s guarded and private areas.”

Todoroki finished his tea before responding. “It was interesting. At first I thought it rather odd and naive for him to let me, a foreigner, have access into a base. But it proved that the kingdom had nothing to hide. Their soldiers were very… cheery and excited to meet Deku and his group. I actually spent most of the time sleeping since…” he moved to touch his face, but hesitated and resisted the urge, “I had stayed up the night before. I was too uncomfortable to sleep.”

“Oh, Shoto,” Rei cooed, “The whole time, I was worried with how you might react to their commodities. I’ve heard that they’re vastly different from us, so I feared for the worst.”

“It wasn’t all that bad. I slept well at the base, and felt rested enough to spar with their squadron that night.”

“Spar?”

“Yeah… Most of their fighting styles were vastly different the one’s I’ve seen here… they seem to utilize movements involving their legs.”

“Mm, that’s odd. I don’t get to see our soldiers practice much, but utilizing leg movements instead of prioritizing the upper body? Seems strange.”

“It was. My partner didn’t do the same through… his style was similar to mine… it was an interesting match. I fought with Deku.”

“Ah, Deku again?”

“He was a formidable opponent. I felt… bothered when our match had come to an end. I was having… fun.”

Rei smiled. “Well I’m glad that Deku contributed to your trip in a good way.”

Todoroki slightly raised his cup and a servant standing nearby rushed over to fill it up with more tea. “He really did. Their whole kingdom seemed to radiate peace… so much that I couldn’t help mentioning it to Deku.It was definitely much more… different from here.” 

Rei nodded slowly. “I see… Well now I know why you arrived 3 days later than I was expecting… sightseeing in Yuuei is very popular, along with a variety of other things. That’s why it’s the top kingdom at the moment. Soon enough you’ll be able to travel and learn about other kingdoms and how they are as you please. You’ll make all sorts of new acquaintances, and soon you won’t stand being locked in the castle anymore, like me.”

Todoroki frowned. Rather than spending those three extra days sightseeing, something much more sinister was keeping them from arriving on time. Of course, he wouldn’t tell her. “Of course not. You’ll be coming with me everywhere. We’ll see everything together, that’s always been the plan.”

The brief thought of being able to accompany Shoto to wherever they wanted to in the future brought temporary joy in Rei’s mind, but she knew that it really could never be like that. Due to multiple forces, she was bound to the castle forever, unable to watch closely over Shoto as he eventually grows up into an older and influential prince. Still, she couldn’t reveal this to him, and preferred to let him dream about their future travels together. 

The two stayed swirling their tea around in silence, listening to the chirps of several different species of birds around them. Todoroki thought it appropriate to bring up the ball that was to take place at Yuuei three weeks from now. Despite the family already agreeing to attend, Todoroki wondered what Rei thought about it.

“Mother, how do you feel about the ball at Yu-” he began so say, but was interrupted by a loud knock on the garden’s greenhouse door.

Before either Rei or Todoroki could answer, the door swung open, and Endeavor stood mightedly at it. 

“It’s time,” was all he said, choosing to look at neither of them.

Undeniably, Rei was frozen with fear, and adorned a startled expression on her face. Todoroki, on the other hand, had less fear. In fact, anger began to pent up in his chest.

“I’m busy,” he responded, looking away from the door and looking back at his tea. When he glanced at Rei and saw her expression, he cursed both himself and Endeavor for putting her like this.

“ **Now** ,” Endeavor said next, and began to walk away. 

Endeavor malicious aura had filled the room, and Todoroki knew that he had to submit and obey now to prevent anything else from happening.

“I’m sorry,” he sighed, and began to stand up.

“Why… why is he doing this all of the sudden?” Rei asked, slightly trembling.

Todoroki looked away, feeling ashamed as he thought back to the night when the training agreement took place.

“I made a promise…” he said, clenching his fists. 

“Shoto… no promise is worth… all of _this_.” she advised, regaining her composure. “I’ll… I’ll talk to him.”

Todoroki eyes widened, and he walked closer to Rei. “I assure you that’s something you need not to do.” He was trying to speak to her in his most formal tone, which was something she liked. For the duration of his trip, he had resolved in himself to prevent Rei from trying to take any action regarding his whole training situation. Whenever she did, things never went well… he swore he would never let anything else happen to her.

“All of this is part of his petty plan to have me become like....” he didn't finish his sentence for her sake. “But I won’t falter, not now, not ever. This is all just part of,” he paused and looked at his open hand in front of him, while some of Deku’s words faintly slipped in and out of his thoughts, “It’s all just a part the process to my true goals,” he finished saying, clenching his fists.

He walked over to her and took her hand, placing a gentle kiss on it. She didn’t look very pleases, rather bothered because of what she knew would come next for Todoroki, but she didn’t want to make light of his resolve. In other words...

“I trust you,” she said at last. 

They both exchanged what somewhat smiles, which was all their hearts were letting them form, and then Todoroki left to fulfill his promise and endure another long night ahead of him.

-

Midoriya and co. have been at it once they got into a serious mode, pitching ideas to each other while Midoriya jotted everything down. After about an hour, they reached a good stopping place, and all of them sat back while Midoriya studied what they had come up with. 

“This is…” he trailed off.

Iida was looking over his shoulder, also reading the results. “Freaky?” he asked, rubbing his chin.

“Yeah…” Midoriya responded. “I didn’t think too much of it back then, but… it’s definitely something to think about _now_.”

“Wow… and it’s really a coincidence that you’re able to contact your mother again after so long…” Uraraka chimed in.

Midoriya was startled. “Ahh! Uraraka! You know about that?”

She frowned. “Huh? Of course. How do you think those letters come and go?”

“You… help Iida?” Midoriya asked dumbly.

Instead of belittling Midoriya, Uraraka turned and gave Iida a sharp look. “You haven’t explain to him yet?”

Iida stepped back from behind Midoriya and adjusted his glasses. “I judged that there hasn’t been time for me to explain properly, that’s all.”

Then she looked at Midoriya. “And you haven’t _cared_ to ask? This is pretty surprising since you’ve made it some personal reason to bother yourself with every little detail about anything.”

Midoriya scratched his cheek. Uraraka was sounding awfully hostile. “Well...I was curious but… I was so willing to accept the idea of being able to communicate with my mom that I never bothered to ask… plus I _am_ really busy anyways…”

“See?” said Iida.

“But still,” Midoriya continued on, “I was and still am curious.”

Uraraka breathed in and deeply exhaled. “I guess,” was all she said.

The silence that followed her remark signaled that it was time to focus back onto the urgency of the dreams.

Iida had handed back the first notebook to Midoriya, who was beginning to analyze the most recent dream now.

They worked for about another hour, same same pattern of Iida and Uraraka reminiscing on events that could possibly correlate with the dreams while Midoriya wrote them down.

A deep sigh on behalf of Midoriya caused them all to stop for another break.

“This ended up being harder than I thought,” Midoriya said, sitting back in his chair. “There’s too many things to think about.”

“I suppose it is rather hard since we’re not exactly ‘qualified’ dream interpreters. Nonetheless. Let's start with what you have so far again.” Iida proposed.

Midoriya appreciated Iida’s ability to get them going even when they feel discouraged, and began to flip through his notes. “Honestly, the biggest thing that keeps popping out is the first appearance of Todoroki in the first dream… I mean soon after, I even ended up meeting him for the first time. I know we just talked about this before too, but I had also even heard my mom’s voice constantly in the background, and next thing you know, Iida figured out a way for her and I to communicate with each other…”

They say that speaking one’s thoughts aloud helps organize them, and at the current moment, Midoriya’s face cleared up because that’s what just had happened. 

“Actually… now that I’m properly looking at these things… it sounds like…”

“Predictions.” Uraraka added ironically.

Midoriya nodded. “Exactly.”

They both turned to Iida to see if he had any insight to provide. To no surprised, he also began to nod.

“So the presences of your mother and Todoroki make sense… but what about what happened at Sato’s base?” he asked.

Midoriya held a pen up to his chin. “That’s what I was thinking about next. For the most part, there was only one major thing that was going on, and that was-”

A knock on the door of his office, as well as the sound of someone reciting his name stopped their dream session.

Midoriya composed himself, and then called for the person to enter the room. Ojiro was soon stepping into the room, and delivered some news to the three.

“Midoriya, His Royal Highness has requested that you meet him in his lounge in an hour from now.” Ojiro recited.

“The lounge room?” Midoriya questioned. “Why there?” He was sure that they’d have a proper meeting in his audience room, or even a whole meeting session with All Might and the rest of the court. 

“Not sure, your highness, but he did also request that you be ready to fully explain your trip and what you’re up to now.”

‘Oh, so it must be more a personal thing,’ Midoriya thought. “Does this mean I don’t have to...”

“Sorry, young master, but you do need to go in formal attire.”

Midoriya sighed. “Alright, I understand. Thank you, Ojiro.”

Ojiro bowed and began to exit the room.

“Lounge room… this late at night… with formal wear?” Uraraka questioned, getting up from one of the couches in the room. “Doesn’t add up.”

Midoriya looked to Iida, who agreed by nodding. “It is strange. But, it’s nothing that All Might won’t explain. Do you think you’re at a good place to leave off?” he asked, pointing at the notebooks.

“I guess… honestly I’m too rattled up by having to meet All Might now that I can’t give this my attention anymore.” Midoriya explained, closing the notebooks. “Would you like us to walk you back to your room, Uraraka?”

She shook her head. “I’ll be fine. You need the time to prepare what you’re gonna report to All Might. Trust I’ll see you two soon? It turns out I have my fair share of things to take care of too…”

“Of course,” Midoriya said, handing some things to Iida and preparing to walk out. “We’ll drop by we can and see if you need any help.”

Uraraka smiled. “Thank you, Prince Izuku,” she said, walking ahead of them. She knew Midoriya didn’t like it when they addressed him like that, but she figured it’d lighten the mood. “Well, hope all goes well. Good night!” she now said enthusiastically, waving one last time before she quickly walked away.

Both boys exchanged their goodbye’s to her as well as they exited the room. Midoriya locked the room, and then promptly the two were on their way back to Midoriya’s room. 

During the walk, Midoriya ran through what he might say to All Might during their meeting. Specifically, should he mention everything about the dreams and Todoroki?

-

“How long are we just gonna wait here?” Toga whined, squirming. Her the Chameleon were crouched between some bushes in midst of the trees that were a part of the forest a few feet away from the castle’s first outer gate.

“We’re gonna end up waiting a lot longer if you keep talking and get us exposed,” Chameleon responded. There wasn’t much risk of him being exposed since we was invisible, but Toga was more likely to be seen. Perhaps they were being a bit too careful, but considering that this was one of the mightiest kingdoms, being too careful was welcomed. 

“So we’re just gonna stay here watching?” she tried to whisper back. Chameleon nodded. 

“Basically, we’re gonna find out who comes and goes, and then once we see a pattern, we’ll know who’s blood to get,” he explained. It seemed that this plan heavily relied on patience after all, but they weren’t in any rush after all. As long as they got what they needed before the royal ball.

Neither were making noises with their mouths now, but a strange sounded escaped from Toga’s stomach. Chameleon snapped his head to her, “What what that?”

“I’m hungry,” she whispered, pouting.

Seemed like it was going to be a long night.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I wont even tease about whats next because I end up being inaccurate lol. 
> 
> PLUS ULTRA!


	14. Reunited with the King

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Midoriya finally talks out some things with the king, All Might. It's been awhile since they've conversed this casually.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> HELLOOOOO to my two fans that are still onboard with this fic  
> apologies for the hiatus, i was vacationing in the depths  
> quality midoriya & all might time in this chpt, since i love midoriya interacting with anyone  
> enjoy :)

“Alright, you’re ready.”

Midoriya stopped fiddling with the pocket watch that was in his hands and observed himself in the mirror ahead of them. He never really cared about what Iida dressed him in, but he found that the outfit he had on was really suiting his taste. 

“This one is pretty nice,” he said, feeling some of the fabric from his sleeves between his fingers. “How come I haven’t seen this one before?”

“It was a gift from Aizawa,” Iida responded while putting away the hangers. 

“Ah.” Midoriya simply said. He wasn’t expecting a man like _Aizawa_ to have been the source behind this great outfit. Guess there’s more to him than meets the eye.

“That reminds me, I still need to send out thank you cards to everyone too, don’t I?” Midoriya asked.

Iida nodded. “But that’s something you can think about later. Are you ready meet with All Might?” 

“Yeah… I more or less thought about what to say. I’m just glad he finally called me in.” Midoriya responded. At first, he had been worried about All Night’s tardiness in requesting a meeting, but Midoriya figured that he would explain why once they met. Besides, Midoriya also generally felt excited to explain what he learned and saw during his trip, specifically how Uravity seemed to really like him. But concerning those two things he thought about earlier, the dreams and the things involving Todoroki, he still wasn’t sure if he should talk about them or not. 

He must’ve looked too bothered because Iida gave him a hard pat on the shoulder, shaking him out of his thoughts. 

“You’ll be fine, I’m sure. This meeting isn’t anything special, just talk with him like you have before, he’ll be happy to hear anything you’ve got to say. Come on now, let’s get going.”

‘You’re right Iida,’ Midoriya thought. He took the stopwatch back out of his pocket to look at the time. Sure enough, it was almost time for the meeting. 

Iida had already walked outside and was waiting for Midoriya, who was slipping the pocket watch back in its place and following Iida out into the hallway. 

The two conversed with absent minded topics, like discussing how Aizawa apparently has good clothing tastes, and how the public people outside the castle dressed. Soon enough, they both stood outside of All Night’s lounge room, which was on the top floor of the castle. Neither of them had been in here for a while, Iida barely remembering the room from one of the tours he got when he first joined the castle. Midoriya had visited sooner than that, but also couldn’t remember much of the room. All Might himself barely spent time in here, since he was always busy doing other things and didn’t have time to lounge around. 

Anyhow, Iida looked over to Midoriya to get the ‘okay’ to go ahead and knock on the door to announce their arrival. 

“Come in,” All Might had said from inside. Iida opened the door and began to walk inside. 

“Your Royal Highness, King All Might, I present to you Prince Izuku.”

From behind Iida, Midoriya summoned himself and walked to the middle of the room. He saw All Might standing in front of a couch that was way farther into the room. The place looked much more vast than Midoriya had remembered. 

He bowed and then greeted All Might. “I have come as you have requested, your highness.” 

“Welcome,” All Might said in response, moving closer to the both of them. “I’m happy you both came back safe and sound. I apologize for not being able to receive you for your arrival myself.”

Midoriya raised himself from his bow. “That’s nothing for you to apologize for, your highness,” he said. 

All Might chuckled. “Alright now, there’s no need for you to speak formally.”

Midoriya gave him a confused look. “But… the formal attire you requested…?”

“That’s just to prepare you for the future. You’ll be called to meetings at any time of the day, and you must always go presentable, no matter what it be about. Consider this practice.” All Might explained. “Come, the both of you, join me and have some tea.” 

Midoriya and Iida began to walk forward, eager now that All Might had dropped the formality. 

“By the way,” All Might began to say as the boys took some seats on two large armchairs in front of All Might’s couch. “That’s a nice fit you have on. I haven’t seen it before.” 

“Ah, thank you,” Midoriya responded. “Neither had I, Iida picked it out. Apparently it was a gift from Aizawa.”

“Aizawa?” All Might questioned. “I didn’t think he was much of a ‘clothes’ person. Or a ‘gifting’ person at that.”

Midoriya and Iida chuckled lightly. “Neither did we, but I can't deny that I really like it.”

“Mhmm…” All Might said, studying it more. “It represents your favorite colors.”

“Yeah, the probably the best part about it.” Midoriya said, briefly picking at some of it’s fabric. 

All Might smiled, and Midoriya could tell he was tired. There was an unusual amount of wrinkles on his face, and eye bags that screamed for some rest. With those little cues, Midoriya concluded that something _had_ been going on after all. He couldn’t inquire about it yet though, since they hadn’t really started talking yet. He’d wait until he could slyly incorporate it into their topics. 

“So, some first impressions of your trip?” All Might asked while Iida filled his cup with tea. 

“Amazing, honestly. I’m grateful that your highness and the court gifted it to me.” Midoriya responded immediately.

A smile grew on All Might’s face. “I’m glad to hear,” he responded, before asking “How did it start out?” 

Before Midoriya continued on about his lengthy trip, he adjusted himself in the seat to get comfortable. “It started off really well, I have no complaints really,” he began to explain. “The only thing that I was telling Iida about earlier is that I would’ve slept more if I knew there would be so much work waiting for us back here,” he added. “But other than that, I really enjoyed spending time with my two best friends. We all needed it.” 

All Might nodded attentively until Midoriya finished speaking. “So it seems you didn’t prioritize resting then? Knowing how you are, I’m not all that surprised.” he added.

Midoriya laughed nervously. “Yeah… I mean I hadn’t been out in what seemed like forever, it just seemed like there was too much to see.”

“Mm… I get where you’re coming from, my boy. I too have times where I feel almost… trapped in these walls,” All Might explained while he looked around the room. 

Midoriya gulped. Had his ears heard correctly? He had never heard All Might reveal something so personal and unprofessional before. Of course, All Might dropped the need for formality in the beginning of their meeting and pointed out that this was just a casual conversation, but still, All Might’s honesty was surprising. Anyhow, he knew that All Might _was_ human after all, and humans make plenty of mistakes despite who they are or how perfect they are. This new revelation was sudden, but not bad to know. Perhaps All Might shared even more of the same feelings as Midoriya than expected.

“...But that’s why we get to indulge in things other than our work every once in a while. There’s always a proper time and place for relaxing.” All Might added.

Ah, there’s that sneaky dash of responsibility.

“It’s unfortunate to hear that you were surprised by your workload. I hoped you wouldn't stress too much about your tasks while you were out and about, but I didn’t expect you to go ahead and completely forget about it.”

All Might said those things without smiling or laughing, which put Midoriya on edge again. It sounded like All Might was disappointed… to him at least. His hands twitched a little, which caught Iida’s attention.

“You highness, he’s not the only one. I, too, neglected to prepare myself for all the work that greeted me here. Somehow, I’ve ended up in the same predicament as him,” Iida said, gesturing at Midoriya. 

“Ah, is that so, Iida?” All Might questioned, focusing his attention on Iida now. “Truthfully, I might’ve guessed so from reading the contents of your letters. They seemed to be written in a differently than how you always write.”

Iida bowed in the spur of the moment, embarrassed to have heard something like that from All Might. “Your highness! I apologize for my unsatisfactory letters! I just…”

“It’s fine, Iida,” All Might said while waving his hand. “It wasn’t a bad thing. Rest assured, your information was clear and precise like always.”

Still bowing, Iida responded with a quick, “Thank you, sir!”

Midoriya was lightly chuckling to himself. In his mind, he made a mental note to reward Iida for changing the tone of their conversation somehow once they were done with this meeting. 

“Well, I’m sure the both of you won’t fail to catch up within a matter of days. But mm… that reminds me Midoriya, we will eventually speak about a few of those ‘said’ tasks, like the etiquette sessions and Flamuralis lessons… but later on. For now, I just want to hear about your trip.”

“Very well,” Midoriya responded. 

Continuing on with a summary of their trip, Midoriya began to talk about _almost_ everything that had happened. He began by explaining their first day exploring a village and staying at an inn, then eventually moving on to some stories from the next day when they visited Sato at the soldier base. 

“That also reminds me about something,” Midoriya said, pausing his story. He extended his hand out towards Iida, signaling that he wanted the folder of the information from Sato. “When we first arrived to the base, we were presented with this,” he said as he handed the folder to All Might, who then took it and began to observe the contents inside.

“They would’ve told you about it earlier, but they insisted I tell you first since… Well, it’s the results from-”

“From the base and messenger system, huh?” All Might interjected with awe in his tone. “I… wasn’t expecting to get such results so soon. I knew everything was in place and suspected success in your system because letters would arrive the same day they were written, but… two hours? I’m truly… speechless.”

Midoriya’s eyes beamed. “Really? I-I mean… it’s all really because of the punctuality of the chosen messengers and such…”

“No, Midoriya. Credit is given where it due of course, but this was all _you.._. The success is all thanks to the years of your work and dedication. Thank you for letting me know first, I assume you’re going to present this to the court as well?”

“Yeah… of course. Just not… right now or anything. Honestly I had intended to report it to only you myself.”

“But Midoriya, my boy, you’d be throwing away a great opportunity. They still respect your efforts from the layout for the system of bases, and with these new set of reports about the messenger system, you’ll gain even more respect from them.”

“The King is right, Midoriya,” Iida added. “I feel like you just said that because you’re tired right now, but we will meet with them eventually. The sooner the better, too.”

Midoriya sighed. Both men were being reasonable. It’s not really that he didn’t want to face the court or anything, but rather he just didn’t feel he had the appropriate energy to deal with a meeting that important. It was a good thing that Iida added that they're going to do it _eventually._ When Midoriya couldn’t count on himself to be responsible, Iida was always there to back him up, often times unapologetically. 

“I understand. I’ll make sure you give you a date before tomorrow morning is over,” Midoriya told All Might. 

All Might smiled at him. “In times like these, Midoriya, I always find myself thinking about how you were and what you would tell me the first couple of times we met, some long years ago.”

“Mm... “ Midoriya hummed, briefly reminiscing those moments as well. A wave a nostalgia fell over all three of them, but only for a brief minute. 

“Well, It’s getting later and later into the night,” All Might said, bringing them all back into the current situation. “How was the rest of your day with Sato?”

“Oh! Right, well, that whole day was just full of...-”

And with that, Midoriya went over some things he had learned about the base and the soldiers from talking with them, and eventually mentioned how him, Iida, and Uraraka joined the whole regime for some sparring. He was being as truthful as he could be, but he w _as_ leaving some _small_ details while he was recounting his story. 

Not that he was purposely doing so, he just happened to skip over some uninteresting parts of the story in order to waste less time. Besides, it’s not like there was any _reason_ to purposely omit all the experiences involving Todoroki during their trip. He also omitted the whole ‘dream’ situation to, again, not get carried away with the ‘boring’ aspects of this trip. 

So that section of the story was relatively short, and the next thing to explain was the trip to Uraraka’s house and finally meeting her family. This seemed to be the highlight of the trip, since Midoriya felt more than comfortable enough to recount his experience there, despite having ran into _that_ man.

“It was great and we were excited, but I ran into a seriously frightening man while we were getting something to eat in the village. I… I couldn’t even move when I had first seen him, and if it wasn’t for Iida, he probably would’ve thought that we were suspicious and…” Midoriya gulped. 

“What did he look like?” All Might asked, intrigued.

Midoriya could see the man vividly in his mind. “Truthfully… he looked very similar to you. Extremely tall and well-built, but it was probably his face that really freaked me out. You could tell he wasn’t any ordinary citizen, or at least that’s what my gut kept screaming.”

“I told Iida and some guards were assigned to keep watch on him just in case. They never reported back, so I assume nothing has happened with him yet.”

“That’s good to hear. I have yet to see a report about this “mystery man”, but I hope that it was just an insignificant part of your vacation,” All Might assured Midoriya. His thoughts, though, were saying otherwise. The man that Midoriya had ran into was undoubtedly the culprit of the new crime that was reported some nights ago. 

Truthfully, that was what explained the unsettledness in his head, and visible restlessness on his face. He knew Midoriya had noticed, but remained quiet about it for some reason. He had prepared himself in case the boy asked anyways. But under no circumstances could he even _hint_ about everything that was going on surrounding that case. He couldn’t even begin to think about how it could affect Midoriya.

These thoughts came and went as Midoriya continued to recount his story.

When Midoriya paused after seemingly have brought up everything he remembered, All Might finally gave some input after having listened attentively until then. “It seems that you’re forgetting to tell me about something…” 

_‘Forgetting something?’_ Midoriya questioned in his head. What could he be forgetting from that day? He had mentioned what Uraraka’s parents were like, and how Uravity took an instant liking to him, so what else was there to say?

“Iida, do you remember the contents of your letter from that day?” All Might asked.

Iida looked into his tea cup for a minute, swirling the warm tea back and forth until his face lit up and indicated that he did, in fact, remember what was in that letter. 

“It appears our young lad was given one of his first ‘ _talks_ ’.” Iida said, dragging out the last word to put emphasis on it. 

“Talk…?” Midoriya repeated. It only took a second more for him to realize what they were talking about.

“Oh, _that_ ,” he said in a rather shy tone. “It was definitely… unexpected. To be honest, I really did forget about that whole thing…”

They were definitely referencing the conversation that he had with Uraraka’s father, the one that questioned his and Iida’s intentions with Uraraka. There wasn’t anything really memorable about that conversation, despite Midoriya being advised that he should ‘experiment’ with his feelings and being led on to suspect that maybe Iida and Uraraka had feelings for each other. 

“Did you?” All Might asked. He then started to scratch at his scalp. “I too planned on discussing with you some…. different things than we’re used to conversing about. I just…. haven’t had time either really… it’s quite shameful of me, being your guardian and all…” 

Was All Might showing… embarrassment now? 

“I-It’s nothing to worry about, All Might!” Midoriya managed to exclaim, though staying quiet enough to not fill the room with his voice. “I know, you’re busy and all, and something like that really isn’t important-”

“But it is important, Midoriya. I blame my lack of knowledge on the subject for having neglected speaking to you about it, but at the very least, you can always tell me about your concerns or questions if you ever need to. We’ll learn about these things out together,” All Might added with a thumbs up. 

All Might’s caring was reassuring and not embarrassing or shameful at all, but it did sound a bit funny to Midoriya that a man as old as All Might was equally inexperienced as him when it came to feelings like love and attraction. It made sense though anyways. Since Midoriya arrived at the castle, he had no recollection of ever hearing about All Might having a ‘partner’ or ‘lover’. It was common for royalty to have multiple of those, or so Midoriya has heard. In their own castle, personal relationships like those were never acknowledged and often disregarded since everyone is always busy with their work, so it was hard to tell when it was going on with anyone. 

But speaking of royalty and partners, Midoriya couldn’t help but wonder about his ‘friend’… Was the same environment present in their castle? Or are feelings as trivial as those acknowledged more and even… practiced? 

The thought made him shiver for some reason, and he decided that they had remained on the topic for long enough. 

“Thank you, All Might. Really though, up until now, I’ve never been bothered with anything regarding that subject. I’m as equally focused on my duties as you are, and I accept the burdens that come from it, like neglecting myself when it comes to certain aspects. But again, I don’t even notice it since it’s not something prominent from my life,” he explained, wrapping things up. 

The loud-ish sound of a silver spoon swirling in a teacup caught both of their attentions. “Not to worry King All Might. I’ll be keeping _very_ close tabs on him from now on as well, at the very least I’ll know when something is up before he can do anything rash,” Iida told All Might. 

_Now_ Midoriya blushed from embarrassment. “I-Iida!” he stammered. 

All Might responded with a light laugh. “I appreciate that, Iida. I wouldn’t entrust Midoriya to anyone but you.” 

After that awkward but entertaining exchange, Midoriya continued on with his tale again, moving onto the rest of the trip that happened without Uraraka. He specifically took his time explaining the extravagant food they ate. 

Soon enough, a couple of hours later, they found themselves laughing well into night time, all three of them unaware that the whole day had already gone by. It really had been awhile since they were able to converse freely like this.

“Well, now I have no doubts that you two really enjoyed yourselves on this trip. I truly am happy.” All might said, chuckling a little to himself. He looked outside and realized that it was dark. “I should probably let you two go, especially if you really plan on keeping your word and catching up to your tasks.”

Iida and Midoriya gathered themselves and became semi-serious once again.

“You’re right,” Midoriya said first. “I think this meeting was one of the more important things to do though. I… I miss talking with you like this, All Might… there’s even…” Midoriya began to think back to the dreams, and to Todoroki. After getting to finally explain some of his fears, doubts, and interests to All Might during this time, he feels like he could maybe even unload more trivial and private things to his guardian. He looked into All Might’s eyes again, and thought back to how tired they looked. 

“I even miss having you lecture and scold me all the time,” Midoriya resorted to say. He gave All Might a sly look, and a tired smile was returned.

“If that’s really the case, I suppose I can make regular rounds around the castle to scold you more often,” All Might teased.

Midoriya laughed sheepishly. “Y-yeah… really?”

“...No, not really”

“Ahh… okay.”

“Well, it really did get pretty late on us, didn’t it?” Iida pointed out, observing his pocket watch. “If we leave any later, I’ll end up having to carry the prince back to his room. Do you prefer a more military-esque pick up, or bridal style?” he joked to Midoriya.

“N-neither,” Midoriya responded, standing up now. “I’ll be awaiting your orders to meet for the lessons,” he told All Might. “I’m really ready for whatever comes next.”

All Might swore he saw a sparkle in his mind, which was odd because there was no light coming from anywhere in the room but the ceiling lamps. “I’ll make sure to bring up that statement when you complain about it later,” he responded, leading both boys to the door. 

“All Might,” Midoriya pouted. “I never complain.”

Again, All Might was brought to chuckle. “I know, young man. Sleep well, and tomorrow we’ll see how things go.”

“Sounds good,” both Iida and Midoriya responded. 

After a final good night, the pair separated from their king, anxious to see what the new day will bring them.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> the ball is rolling again! next update soon, along with action and stronger love interest plot lines <32
> 
> PLUS ULTRA!


	15. Moving Along pt II

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Following the night of All Might's and their's meeting, Iida's worries continue to loom over Midoriya, who finally gets to voice his requests at a meeting with the court officials.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> welcome back again x15   
> moving along!!! again!!!

The next morning, or rather afternoon since Midoriya and Iida had gotten back to their rooms at around six in the morning, Midoriya slid himself out of bed once he was able to fully open his eyes, and slumped over to his bathroom. He saw that Iida was already there, distracted by testing the water in Midoriya’s bath.

“Mm… mornin’” Midoriya greeted, walking over to the sink. 

“Good morning,” Iida responded, beginning to empty a bottle of something into the bath. “How are you feeling?”

Midoriya didn’t answer immediately since he was brushing his teeth. After a minute or two and a few rinses, he said said, “Kinda groggy, honestly. What time did we go to sleep?”

Iida thought back for a second. “I think you were dozing off by six.”

“Ah, that explains it,” Midoriya said. “And you?”

“Well… you don’t have to worry about that. Are you ready for the bath?”

“Wait, Iida, you stayed up all night?” Midoriya questioned.

“Technically not all night since we came back from All Might’s meeting in the morning,” Iida informed him. “Now do you want me to remove your clothes or would you rather trust in the aides to do it?”

Midoriya blushed. “Y-You of course!” he exclaimed, hugging himself. 

Iida chuckled, walking over to Midoriya to begin stripping off his sleepwear. He started by undoing the buttons on his shirt, while Midoriya looked over to the wall, still a bit flustered. “How many times have the both of us gone without sleep for a day or two?” Iida asked. “Today will be no different. In fact, you’ll probably love me for it, if you’re even capable of loving.”

Once his shirt was off, Midoriya sat down so that Iida could remove his pants. “What’s that about?” Midoriya questioned the comment. 

Iida chuckled again. “It’s just… you kept the same dense attitude with All Might last night, even though he essentially told you it's okay to tell him about those things.”

Midoriya rolled his eyes. “What are you even saying?”

The room stayed in silence for a minute, Iida focused on folding Midoriya’s clothes once they were all off. He waited until Midoriya seeped a foot into the bath saying “The water is perfect, as usual,” before explaining something that had been on his mind for quite some time now.

“You know… I’ve always been interested in Uraraka.”

Um, what? Did Midoriya hear that correctly? 

The statement caught him so off guard that he slipped while stepping into the bath and essentially fell into the edge of large bathtub. What seemed like enormous amounts of water splashed back out, wetting the floor and part of Iida’s pants. 

“Your highness--!!!” Iida exclaimed, stepping into the tub to help Midoriya sit upwards. He got a hold of one of his flailing arms and pulled him up, getting his head out of the water. “Im… I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to startle you like that.”

Once he was above the water, Midoriya began to cough out some water that had gone up his nostrils during his fall. 

“Oh… it’s fine,” he said sarcastically, coughing into his arm to get the last of the fluid out. “Seriously, what’s up with you today?” He sounded irritated. 

Iida shied away, unsure if he was ready to explain himself at this time. The truth is that Iida had refused to sleep in order to prepare meetings for Midoriya to meet with the council and receive his next set of tasks, but was also bothered by the words Midoriya had exchanged with All Might…

_“...something like that really isn’t important...”_

_“...I’ve never been bothered with anything regarding that subject...”_

_…”neglecting myself when it comes to certain aspects like that…”_

Even thought it was noble for a young boy to be saying things like that, it didn’t feel right. True, there’s less chance of Midoriya discovering what romance is since he’s confined to the castle for the most part, but shouldn’t he be the slightest bit curious? It’s not like those feelings are bad. 

Either way, Iida felt responsible for the way Midoriya acted towards it. He never gave much thought to either since he was always busy babying and instructing Midoriya in every other sense, so in conclusion, he feels like he failed. 

Determined to continue with his original plan, which conveniently was a truthful story, Iida faced Midoriya once again. The scowl on the prince’s face made him retract his determination though.

_‘It’s not time,_ ’ he finally deduced. As a farce, he laughed lightly. “I’m sorry, your highness. I just wanted to see how you’d react.”

Midoriya turned away from him, crossing his arms as he relaxed in the warm water. “It wasn’t funny. You really need to work on jokes before you made a fool of yourself socializing at the ball.”

Iida smiled lightly. “Very well, your highness. I’ll work on that right away,” he responded. With a bow, he let himself out of the room, preparing to interrogate himself until Midoriya had called him once he was finished with his bath. 

-

“I refuse.”

“Mm?”

“I refuse, I said,”

“Eh? Refuse what?”

“Training.”

“Ah… hahaha….”

Todoroki looked puzzle. Why was the old man laughing?

“You’re foolish to be taking this as a joke,” he let him know.

“A joke? Oh quite the opposite, I know you’d never be capable of making anyone laugh, much less me. It’s just interesting to see that you think you could just ‘refuse’ as you please. Have you forgotten our agreement?” Endeavor replied, reinforcing his arm with some fireproof sleeves. 

“I haven’t forgotten, but I don’t care to follow it either. Whether we train or not, I’m still going to Yuuei’s ball. It’ll be the best for our relations with them, and the best for our kingdom,” Todoroki said. 

Enji laughed to himself. “ _You_ think it’s best for the kingdom? Listen to yourself, brainwashed by them even though you’ve only been there once.”

Todoroki scowled. “Our short trip there was enough for me to judge them as a respectful kingdom and…” Midoriya to mind, as always. “...Valuable trade partners. If you don’t believe so, then you’re the one short-sighted here.”

“Oh, is that so?” Endeavor replied, pacing around the room. “Did you suddenly drink some witches’ courage juice this morning? Thinking you can speak like this to me, even though you’ve been lying at my feet begging for mercy every night?”

The bruises and cuts on Todoroki’s ached. “I never _beg_ for mercy. You just give out early.”

Endeavor laughed once again. “You don’t need to act tough with me. I know about _every_ jagged cut and tender flesh that I leave on your body day after day after day. I do pity you somewhat… but with this new attitude of yours, I’ll make sure to give you what you’re asking for.”

“I already told you I’m not going along with your foolish-”

“Your mother put you up to this, didn’t she?”

Todoroki froze. The conversation had gone to where he feared the most. “Why would you even bring that up-”

“That woman,” Endeavor growled. “All she ever does is get in the way,” he said as he began to walk towards the door.

“Wh-Where are you going,” Todoroki stuttered, following him. 

“You care? Tough man? I’m going to ‘fix’ this little rebellion problem of yours.” Endeavor replied.

“Don’t…” Todoroki began to say, freezing in his spot. His anger was beginning to get the best of him.

“ _ **Don’t**_ ,” he repeated, clenching his fists. Little by little, the temperature of his body began to rise, and soon enough, he was emitting a warmth that even Endeavor felt. 

Endeavor stopped with his back towards Todoroki, grinning. “Or _what_?” he asked. 

That taunt was all it took for Todoroki to let him flames go loose, which promptly engulfed the room. Bright hues of orange and yellow decorated the furniture in the room, burning everything their its way. 

Endeavor had to squint his eyes just slightly to accustom his eyes to the sudden flashes of light in front of him. “That’s it…” he cooed, walking closer to Todoroki. 

With his fists clenched, and his anger soaring, Todoroki also took a step forward. He’d make his old man regret threatening his mother all stop all the bullshit once and for all. He was ready, ready to finally make use of the excruciating pain he’s been going through the past few days, eager to use his father’s tactics against him and ensure that he would now become someone with power who could be feared.

All these thoughts excited him so much to the point where the heat in his body became too hot for his head, and he began to feel light-headed. He stumbled back a bit, his flames decreasing in power. Soon enough, he found himself on the floor, knocked out cold, every last thought in his mind becoming a blur and soon disappearing into the darkness along with his sight. 

Endeavor sighed. “I see you can’t keep up with the burden,” he said, studying Todoroki’s body for new wounds. To his surprise, he didn’t see any new ones. “Pity. I was interested to see what you were capable of too.”

He called the guards in to the room, ordering that they put out the remaining fire in the room and take Todoroki to the infirmary. 

Though Todoroki wasn’t awake to see the fruits of his anger, Endeavor had indeed decided to lessen the intervals of their training, although it was only to accommodate for Todoroki’s new willingness to use their quirk, the flames. In the end, the real winner was Endeavor though. He had finally figured out his stubborn son’s true weakness. 

-

“You want _both_ the etiquette _and_ Flamuralis courses?” Aizawa asked, observing the letter that Midoriya had written to the council. 

“Yes, your honor,” Midoriya responded whilst bowing down on his knee. “I believe that my mind and body are refreshed enough to take on both things at the same time, in order to decrease the time that it would take me to become a worthy successor.”

Aizawa gave him a questioning look, and then looked over the letter again. “Those are heavy words you speak. The plan was to first teach you etiquette in time for the ball, and then afterwards you would dedicate yourself to the Flamuralis lessons. If we agree to your request, you’ll only get about three weeks worth of time ahead than usual. Such a small gain… are you willing to make a sacrifice for something so little?”

Iida’s back became tense. Aizawa, again, was speaking the truth. Stressing double the amount of usual to only advance three weeks ahead of schedule seemed like too little of a pay off. Whatever Midoriya’s decision may be… Iida hoped it wouldn’t make the council think badly of him.

“Your honor I…” Midoriya began to say. He looked up from the ground, staring right into Aizawa’s eyes. “The trade off between my sacrifice and the time I would gain has not been set in stone. Until I try to handle both lessons at the same time, then I cannot say my sacrifice would be worthless. I plead you trust me, as the future successor, and all my being.”

The look in young Midoriya’s eyes was almost… stunning. “Very well,” Aizawa said without blinking or looking away. “I accept your challenging request. The rest of the court, say ‘I’ if you too agree with my decision.”

One by one, the court officials professed their ‘I’s, meaning that Midoriya would get what he wanted. Truthfully, almost all of the officials had began to enjoy being impressed by Midoriya’s efforts to 1-up himself with each new task he got, and this time was no different.

Just earlier, when their meeting had first began, they congratulated Midoriya for the results of the base communication success. Their trust in him was growing larger by the day. 

“Very well,” Aizawa announced. “Starting today, are you to be instructed by the finest in our kingdom about proper royal etiquette, as well as sharing the day between those lessons and coursework about Flamuralis, per your request. Once this meeting is over, you will report to the west wing of the castle to the banquet hall room and meet your instructors. Iida will further inform you about the coursework afterwards. Do you have any last words? Doubts?”

Midoriya gave the tiniest hint of a smile, but wiped it away before he responded, “No, your honor.”

Midnight stood from her seat. “The meeting has concluded. Prince Izuku, you may leave the chambers.”

“Understood, your honor,” was how he chose to dismiss himself from the court, and proceeded to walk out of the chambers, followed by Iida. Once closer to his room, he turned to speak to Iida. “They really weren’t kidding about those time crunches huh? To start the lessons right after the meeting… Yuuei continues to amaze me.”

Iida smiled. “At this point, between you and the court, I wonder who amazes who the most.”

Midoriya laughed lightly. “They’re amazed by me? I still can’t get over the dead stares I get when I walk in there… they seem like anything _but_ interested in me.”

“Don’t be so harsh on yourself. In all my years here at the castle, I don’t think I’ve ever seen Aizawa smile at anything,” Iida reassured him with a pat. 

“True… at least he has good tastes,” Midoriya joked, walking into his room. 

“Maybe they all have some secret hobby that they disclose to no one… that’ll be entertaining to think about every time we speak with them.”

“Iida, you sound so childish right now,” Midoriya chuckled. Since there was no time to waste, the aides let themselves into the room and began to search for an outfit comfortable enough for Midoriya to prance around in. 

“Thanks. I wonder who influences me,” Iida responded, helping take off Midoriya’s current outfit.

“Certainly not me. Maybe it’s Uraraka.”

Iida hesitated hanging the clothes for a second. “Cunning. It’s a good thing those etiquette lessons start right away, or else you’ll scare off your favorite guest.”

“Eh?” Midoriya said, putting his arms in the air so the aides could slide a garment on him. “What, are you talking about Todoroki?”

The aides giggled, and Midoriya ignored them. “He comes to mind every once in a while… sometimes I get this, almost bad feeling whenever I do. It’s strange. Is that what you want to hear?”

“I wonder…” was all Iida responded. 

While the aides finished dressing Midoriya, he walked over to the desk in the room and observed that the letter was still out. He waited until the aides has exited the room before raising a question over it. 

“You haven’t read it?”

Midoriya looked at it, adjusting his pants. “I haven’t had time… all the dream-analyzing and meetings haven’t let me… the thing is, I’ve waited this long, so waiting a little longer won’t hurt.”

“... I see,” Iida responded, tucking it into a folder, and then tucking the folder into a cabinet. “Uraraka and I had planned to show you how we transport the letters, but I see now that you’re too busy for such a thing.”

Midoriya’s eyes widened. “H-Hey! You never mentioned that before!” 

Iida walked over to him and placed his hands on Midoriya’s shoulders, gently pushing him towards the door. “Now, now. No need to get your feathers all rustled before learning how to act in front of important people.”

Midoriya protested. “I’m serious Iida! Let me look at it so I could be ready for tonight..!”

“Oh, woe is me, woe is me. My poor master overworks himself too much, I cannot bear to see him so… stressed… I can almost hear him demand me to give him more work to do… what shall I do for the master I love so much…”

“Iida!!” Midoriya exclaimed, finally getting pushed out the door.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> gee... I wonder how Iida has been keeping up with his #nosleep challenge... really hope it doesn't cause any harm in the near future...


	16. Connections

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Connections are being made everywhere... fists with flames, mothers with sons, and villains with successful missions.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> bam here we go, another dynamic chapter (which i really wanted to name MA part III)

“Step one, step two, step three, step- No no your highness, the other foot.”

“Oh, right. Sorry,” Midoriya apologized, fixing his footing. 

“Alright, once more,” the instructor began. “Step one, step two, step- ah!”

Midoriya’s has just stepped on her toes. “Oh my, miss!” He exclaimed, grabbing her wrist and putting an arm around her back. “I’m sorry, are you okay?” 

Thank her lucky stars that her hairdo fell over her face, because right now a terribly bright red hue began to deep into her cheeks. This is something she should be used to now, since she was always close to royal members of the throne, teaching them how to dance as their bodies pressed tightly together. 

This was different though, this was soon-to-be Prince Midoriya, and although they had only been practicing for half a day, his charm had already melted her heart despite being a few years younger than her. 

Embarrassment surrounded her now, realizing that she was blushing because of a fifteen year old’s sympathy for her. 

“It’s… fine,” she finally responded, standing up straight. “I don’t blame you so much as I blame those shoes,” she joked, attempting to distract her flustered mind. 

“Ah,” midoriya said, letting go of her to observe his shoes. “Yeah… they feel as heavy as they look, unfortunately.” He thought back to all the times he had accidentally stepped on her during their lesson, which immediately made him wince because it turns out all the accident had actually been _hurting_ the whole time. 

He looked up to apologize again, but she was far from him now, taking a seat at one of the lounge chairs in the room. 

“I’m terribly sorry,” he said once again, this time with a bow. 

“It’s fine your highness, please raise your head,” she said while she massaged her foot. “It’s only your first day after all, there’s no need to be harsh on yourself.” 

Midoriya raised himself from the bow. She had a point… if he was some other normal person. But he isn’t, he’s Izuku Midoriya, the successor to the strongest king they’ve ever had, and the only successor to not be chosen because of royal blood ties but instead for the qualities in him that made him worthy enough to All Might. 

He bowed once again. “I appreciate your kind words, but I am in no position to accept failure and defeat. Please continue teaching me- I’ll even take off these ridiculous shoes.” 

She began to get flustered again. “Your highness,” she said, barely able to keep herself from exclaiming her apology as she stood up blushing. “I apologize for my inconsiderate statement, let us commence the lesson once again… this time with the new suggestion you just said.” 

Midoriya smiled. “Yes, of course.” 

“Alright, let’s start fresh then. The first step sets the tone for the next steps…” 

-

“You said you’d be able to control your foolish temper. That is the only reason _why_ I let go of your reigns and let you do as you please.”

“Hey now. I did control myself, didn’t I mineta?” 

Mineta remained silent. 

“You call _this_ controlling yourself, huh?” The man said, tossing them a piece of paper. 

Miners grabbed it first from the ground, but had the paper ripped from his hands by Muscular. It was a report from one of the soldiers in Yuuei, which read, 

_‘Two men horrendously murdered on a hidden path between the villages of Fari and Urevi. The victim's belongings were left untouched, making the investigation harder to find a motive behind the killings.’_

“Guess it was a good thing we ignored all the shit they had in the carriage, right Mineta?” 

“ _ **Another mistake like this, and I’ll be sure to end their investigation by sending them what’d be left of your corpse.**_ ” 

“Hey… hey…” Muscular began to say, backing up. “The report says that they’re having a hard time with the investigation right? There’s no need to worry… those soldiers from Yuuei aren’t to be messed with. If they haven’t gotten a lead yet, it’ll be harder for them to as the days go by.” 

“That’s still no excuse to have broken the boss’s orders. You’re gonna regret having no brain in that massive head of yours,” the man replied, igniting what seemed like a blue flame in his palm. 

“Mm… come on Dabi. If I gave you this, would you still think badly of my empty head?” Muscular asked, removing a roll of papers that were kept deep in his pocket. He extended them out towards Dabi, who quickly yanked them away. 

His eyes bounced quickly across the paper, skimming it and then giving Muscular a questioning look. “You think this is helpful?”

“It-it is, sir,” Mineta responded this time. “All of that information is fresh… I figured the more we know about the whole kingdom instead of just relying on getting into their castle, the better our chances will be to carry out the master’s plans.” 

“Mm…” Dabi hummed, looking over the papers again. “That makes sense… of course this is thanks to you Mineta. Muscular, this doesn’t ease your punishment.” 

Muscular rolled his eyes. “When you say it like that, I actually feel kind of excited.” 

“You’re… gross,” Dabi deadpanned. “Whatever, get out of my sight. I’ll show these to the boss.” 

“Wait, you can't tease me and then dismiss me,” Muscular whined. 

“Oh, you’re not satisfied just imagining your potential torture?” Dabi asked, putting the papers away. “Well, it makes sense since you can’t keep a train of thought running for more than a few seconds.” 

He stepped forward and held his palms upward, sparking a blue flame once again. “I won’t take responsibility for what happens.” 

An invitation to fight, just what Muscular wanted and played at. Eager, he removed his cost and threw it aside, stretching his upper body as he flexed his muscles. “Just what the doctor ordered.” 

Mineta saw the fight unfolding and quickly ran out, fearing what might happen to him if he stayed glued to his spot. 

_‘It’ll feel good to finally let go at least’_ Dabi thought, unleashing his true flames. Blue light danced all around the room, quickly bringing Muscular to a sweat. 

“Don’t hold back, pretty please,” Muscular asked, taking the first lunge forward. 

-

Iida knocked on the door where Midoriya was having his first etiquette lessons. It was time to retrieve him to inform him about the Flamuralis coursework, even though it was well into the hours of the morning. He hadn’t slept for about two days now, since they arrived from their trip, and he noticed that it was starting to get to him, since he felt his eyes droop every once in a while.

_“I just have to introduce all the books to him, and then I’ll be able to sleep. He’s bright enough to figure out the rest on his own,”_ he thought. 

The door in front of him opened, and he was met by the instructor. “Come in, Iida,” she invited him, stepping aside. 

Iida immediately scanned the room for Midoriya, focused on his task and that task only, but he couldn’t find him.

“Where is-”

“He’s resting right over there,” she whispered quietly, pointing to one of the window ledges on the far side of the room. It was covered by a curtain, but sleep-deprived Iida still didn’t take long to figure out what was going on. 

“Excuse me,” he said, walking over. As he got closer, he could already see the indents of the curtain that made out the prince’s sleeping body. He pulled them open, and low and behold, Midoriya was sleeping. Iida sighed, turning to the instructor. “He really got _this_ tired?” he asked in disbelief. It was rare to catch Midoriya off guard, especially during a lesson like this with someone he barely knew. Iida wondered which one of them was really the one that’s been up for two entire days.

“Well… He was very insistent on learning the whole routine today so… I had to oblige. He told me he was just going to rest his eyes but… well, when he stopped responding to my questions, I knew he was out cold. I’m sorry for letting it happen, but it’s not my place to wake him,” she said, walking away. From the tone of her voice, it sounded like she wished to be the one sleeping instead of Midoriya. 

Geez, it seemed that the whole castle was sleep deprived. 

“Your highness… Midoriya,” Iida said gently, tapping Midoriya’s shoulders a few times. 

Midoriya came through a bit, groaning as his head turned the opposite way of Iida. 

“You fell asleep on a window ledge… I can’t even begin to imagine what Aizawa or… _All Might_ would say if he saw you like this.”

MIdoriya groaned even louder. “I’m up… I’m up…” he mumbled, moving a bit before he began to sit up. He was greeted by an unamused look of Iida face and smiled sheepishly. “You found me… wow!” he said, quite unanimated. “There’s truly no one like you in the castle-”

“Save your compliments for our wedding, please,” Iida teased, letting go of the curtains and walking back. “I came to get you to brief you on your Flamuralis lessons. Truthfully, I’m hoping we get it over with soon so I can-”

“Ahhh wow… I had kinda forgotten about that,” Midoriya said, standing up. He stood up a little too fast though, and felt dizzy for a few seconds while he looked at the little fuzzies in his head. 

Iida giggled a little. “When you’re okay, let’s start heading back,” he urged, already walking to the door. 

“Yessir,” Midoriya responded, jogging to catch up and follow him out the door. The instructor had already left, so he couldn’t properly apologize for the other fifty times he had stepped on her during the second half of their practice. In his princely mind, he figured he’d make up for it with some expensive gifts. 

_‘Did I really just think that?’_ He asked himself with a frightened look. It was probably because she was a new face to him, and also pretty attractive, which somehow triggered a royal side of his empathy. 

“You alright?” Iida asked, having noticed that Midoriya was lost in thought.

“Ah, yeah,” Midoriya played it off, shaking the thoughts from his head. “Did they tell you anything special when they gave you the lists of novels and assignments?”

“Mm…” Iida hummed. “There might be something written in the report, but I didn’t finish going over it. I just know the gist of what you’re going to be studying and that alone began to make my head spin.”

Midoriya’s eyes widened. “Made your head spin…? You’ve never said anything like that before… Iida, you still haven’t slept at all, have you?.”

“Well after I introduced the assignments I planned to drop dead wherever I’ll be, so until then, enjoy my slightly less-than-perfect demeanor,” Iida explained, being the first to walk into Midoriya’s room.

“How exciting…” Midoriya said sarcastically, removing his bulky shoes immediately after entering the room. “What’s really the point of these hideous shoes,” he said, sitting at the chair on his desk. 

Iida put them away at the bottom of the closet and walked over to the desk, opening a cabinet to pull out several stacks of paper and a few hardcover books. “It’s probably some… tradition, I don’t know.”

Upon hearing this, Midoriya’s hands flew to cover his mouth as he gasped. “‘ _I don’t know?_ What… What have you become,” he whispered. 

As fatigued as he was, Iida managed to chuckle. “What? Aren’t you always teasing my square professionalism and asking me to loosen up every once in a while?” He began to open some folders, laying them carefully in order to cover the entire desk. 

“...I never imagined you actually would,” responded Midoriya, dropping his hands and looking over the papers. Something actually did come up though, and he smiled slyly. “Well I guess I shouldn't be too surprised since I’ve already seen you drunk on _several_ occasions.”

Iida scowled. “Low blow,” was all he said in response. His attention was quickly guided back to the papers. Before he could finish setting all of them down, he noticed Midoriya had been holding the new letter from his mother. 

“...That’s right…” he said quietly, putting the rest of the folders down in a pile. “I promised to show you how Uraraka and I would send the letter… and right now is the time we do the exchange,” he said, getting Midoriya’s attention. 

Undeniably, Midoriya probably wouldn’t be able to focus on the lessons until the letter situation was done. He was proved right when he saw the little puppy eyes Midoriya had began displaying. “...I’ll go get Uraraka,” he said promptly. Because of his sleep deprivation, he hadn’t even questioned if waking Uraraka suddenly that late was acceptable, and Midoriya’s eagerness to go along with it wasn’t helping. 

Soon enough, Iida was knocking quietly on Uraraka’s door, making sure he didn’t make too much noise, nor look too suspicious. Everything was suddenly a lot harder when the brain was screaming for rest.

Back in the room, Midoriya was already finishing up his letter. The last letter he had sent was full of basic things, asking how Inko how she was doing and feeling. He was still wary of writing important information. He trusted the system that Iida and Uraraka came up with, but there was always room for error and for things to go wrong. 

After reading that his mother was doing just fine, explaining some of the things she had discovered throughout the weeks and what she had been cooking, Midoriya responded by saying similar things, most notably explaining what his friends were like. 

Little by little, he would explain every aspect of his new life until it felt like the two were never separated. The ten years they had spent apart would soon feel like nothing, hopefully. 

_‘Yours always,”_ was his last line. With that, he double sealed the letter with two envelopes and was ready to find out his friend’s brilliant delivery system. 

-

“Hey, you see that?” Toga whispered, pointing to a small door that was opening on the side of the castle. Promptly, three figures walked through it, quickly closing the door behind them.

“Mm… who could they be?” Chameleon questioned, squinting to get a better look at them. They were all wearing long capes with hoods, so it would be impossible for them to be identified even if the two knew who they were.

“Do you think they could be-”

“ _Be quiet_ ,” Chameleon interrupted her, turning his head in hopes of hearing even a tiny bit of their conversation. 

“...A-amazing…” one of them said. 

A large black looking mist floated above their heads, sheltering them from the moonlight. It seemed to be coming from quiet far away… although it seemed impossible to trace it back to it’s point of origin because of how tiny the line was stretched. To anyone without a sharp eye, it just looked like a lone black cloud. 

“Black shadow, you are dismissed,” another one of them said. This one sounded like a girl. 

“What do you think that is?” Toga asked, also in awe of the black mist. 

“I don’t know but…” Chameleon responded. “It looks like they gave it something… a letter maybe.”

“Ohh.. good eye,” Toga complimented. 

Now that the black mist had left, the moonlight was able to shine on their faces once again. Chameleon got a good look at then, and unmistakably saw something that would make their night. 

“It’s him…!” he exclaimed as quietly as he could. He had undoubtedly seen a dash of green hair and a face with freckles. This was the brat they were after… sneaking out at night with what must be his guards for some reason. 

“... I see…” Toga said. “I know what to do,” she said suddenly, taking out her knife. “Hey, lend me some of your blood will ya?”

Chameleon backed away from her, but looking at her unaffected expression made a few things click in his head. “You really think you can?” was all he asked.

“Just watch,” she said with an evil grin. 

Chameleon eventually complied, figuring that this might be the only opportunity for them to carry this out. He let her cut his arm, seemingly knowing where all the veins and arteries are since the little incision she made let out gushes of blood. 

“So beautiful…” she sang, blushing. After a second of admiring the blood, she brought his arm to her mouth and began to drink some of it, greatly disgusting Chameleon. 

_‘It’s for the mission, it’s for the mission,’_ he repeated to himself. 

While still attached to him, her body began to ooze again, shedding her true body and soon becoming an exact replica of Chameleon. 

After a few more seconds, she finally let go. “If you don’t put pressure on that, you’re gonna die,” she told him, looking at the castle walls. 

Immediately, his hand clapped over his arm, and he watched as she became nothing amongst their surroundings. It was all up to her now, and Chameleon just watched as she executed her plan.

-

“That was so cool,” Midoriya whispered, watching the mist go away. “What’s his name again? How did you find him?” he asked, eager to hear their responses. 

“His name is Tokoyami, and his quirk is called Black Shadow. Pretty cool huh? We met him one day while patrolling the villages while you were busy with your Yuuei lessons. It didn’t take long to work something out with him, I think you’d really like him,” Iida explained. 

“Amazing…” Midoriya said again. 

“If your mother responds immediately, he’ll be back here tomorrow night,” Uraraka said with a smile. 

“I see…” Midoriya hummed. “Well, it’s amazing you guys figured out what time to come in order not to be caught… who would’ve known you were so sneaky.”

Uraraka chuckled lightly. “We’d do anything for our beloved master,” she said, grabbing a hold of his arm. 

“...We should really get going now,” Iida said, observing their surroundings. “I feel like…” he began to say. What he wanted to say was _‘I feel like someone is watching us’_ , but they were having such a great time that he dismissed the thought, figuring that it was probably because of his lack of sleep. 

“Uraraka, did you know Iida hasn’t slept since the last time we slept on our trip?” Midoriya asked, taking the first steps to walk back to the castle door.

“No way,” Uraraka gasped, looking at Iida. The multiple eye bags under his eyes were enough proof to believe it. She opened her mouth to scold him, but suddenly she felt a sensation on her neck. 

She had an urge to clap her hand where she felt it, but remembered that a clap would easily be heard by the guards. She crept her hand up and placed it where she felt it, sliding her fingers along her throat to find out what had caused it. 

“What’s wrong?” Midoriya asked, noticing how spooked she looked. 

She didn’t feel anything with her hand, so she dropped it and walked closer to him. “Nothing,” she said, dismissing her suspicion. “I got bit by a mosquito,” she sighed, following them into the castle. 

“They have some new ointment for that in the infirmary,” Midoriya informed her, closing the door behind them. 

Once they had all gone back into the castle, Toga hurried back to the spot where she left Chameleon, tapping him on the shoulder and then running deep into the forest. Eventually she started to ooze, the blood she had taken from Chameleon had run out faster since she was using his quirk.

She was stark naked now, but didn’t seem to care. When Chameleon had finally caught up to her, and groaned in disgust once he saw her, she held out a bottle to him. “The boss’ll be real happy about this,” she said. Inside the little bottle, a few drops of blood swirled around as moved the bottle. 

“Toga…” Chameleon trailed off, looking at it with astonishment. 

“I also got their names. Iida, Midoriya, and Uraraka,” she said next. 

“This… This is perfect.” Chameleon took the bottle from her and put it in one of his bags, promptly taking out a change of clothes while he was at it. “Put these on quickly,” he said.

She did as she was told, and soon the two were making their way to spread the good news to their boss. 

-

“In short, this is all you have to study,” he said as he traced his finger down some of the lists on the paper. 

‘ _This is all?_ Midoriya thought. There was easily eight folders in front of him, each with stacks of paper in each pocket, and each stack probably consisting of ten or more papers. Oh, each paper also had about a list that had fifteen or more assignments on it. To put things into better perspective, the Yuuei assignments were about half of the folders and it still took six months to complete…

Iida noticed the look of shock on his master’s face. “It’s not so bad,” he offered, picking up one of the lists. “Most of these are based on small passages in the books, unlike the Yuuei one’s where you had to read the entire things,” he said, showing Midoriya the list. “These are more accessible too… a lot of these books are here in our library, we don’t have to wait for them to be brought here from around the kingdom-”

“I’m… it’s okay,” Midoriya stopped him. 

Iida looked at him confused. 

“S-sorry,” Midoriya apologized, taking the paper into his hands. “It’s alright, I’m not worried or anything. I was just… intimidated.” He tucked the paper back into its respective folder and sat back in the chair. “This is all just…”

“...Steps for you to become the best successor for our beloved kingdom,” Iida finished his sentence. 

Midoriya smiled. “Yeah… I’m going to become exactly that,” he said, closing the folders. He picked out the very first one that Iida had laid out, and stood. “At least I don’t have to worry about damaging anyone’s feet with these,” he joked, beginning to walk towards the door. 

“Your highness,” Iida stopped him. “I’ll help you pick out the books.”

Midoriya stared at him, and then shook his head. “Uhh… no you’re not. In your state, I think you’d end up getting us both lost in our library.”

Harsh… but not really. Only by saying something like that would Iida feel discouraged enough to not accompany Midoriya and finally fall asleep. In other words, it was for his own good. Midoriya was truly an impressionable young master. 

“You can sleep on my bed too, I’ll just be working here,” Midoriya said next, gesturing to the desk with his head. 

Iida was too tired to even protest, already feeling his body absentmindedly walking towards Midoriya’s bed. 

“I’ll try not to cry too loud,” Midoriya joked before he exited the room and closed the door behind him. 

Iida hadn’t even really heard him, already being swayed by the waves of unconsciousness as soon as his body felt the softness of the bed. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hope the story deviations weren't confusing.   
> Everything is slowly coming together...   
> so canon Toga can't use the quirk of the person she's copying, but she does in this AU :-)   
> right now i'm like Iida and Midoriya combined... so much work to do and barely getting sleep lol. but writing this is worth it, so apologies for mistakes and such. i'm constantly having to re-read chapters to remind myself previous details that will come into play in the future hahh  
> see ya next time


	17. Reminiscing

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> welcome back yall  
> hope you've been staying warm this winter season!  
> this chpt will get you ready for what coming... hopefully  
> see you after

“... Seems that you two _actually_ succeeded in completing what the boss wanted,” the man said, inhaling a great big whiff of air from his cigar. “As promised, here’s what you wanted.”

Two men from a room behind them came out and laid bags in front of Chameleon and Toga. It was obvious what was inside of them. 

“Ahh~ I’m gonna buy soooo much food with this,” Toga sang, beginning to pick up coins from the bags and letting them slip through her fingers onto the floor. “Giran, you really know how to make a girl happy.” 

Giran laughed. “It’s not from me, sweetheart. That Shigaraki is the one that asked me to give you this… Man really knows how to treat his subordinates.”

“Ehh? Shigaraki?” Toga repeated. “He’d never give us a something like this... It’s been a while since we last seen him. I wonder if anyone’s stabbed him yet…” 

“Speaking of which,” Chameleon interrupted Toga’ chatter. “Where is Shigaraki?”

Giran sat back in his lounge chair. “Well he’s not here, if that’s what your askin’. I told em’ he should come and see how things are for himself, but he just shooed me away saying this place is full of nothin’ but scum and greed. I kinda disagree though, Yuuei sure is somethin’ special.” 

Toga nodded excitedly. “Mmhmm. There’s so many people walking around like they don’t have a care in the world… I wonder what kind of blood they would sport if something bad happened to them…” 

“So where exactly is he?” Chameleon asked again.

“Ah, you really wanna know? Last I heard he was in Calabasas with Dabi, they’re dealing with Muscular while they wait for the results of our mission. I’m sure they’ll all swing by to make final preparations for what the master has in mind... It’s only a matter of time before we see this pretty kingdom crumble, so we should enjoy it while we can…”

“Huh? I don’t want Yuuei to crumble…” Toga whined, but then started to smile. “I wanna see it stained in _red_.” 

Giran chuckled. “Don’t worry, girl. This place will be decorated with red like no other.” 

Toga jumped from the chair. “Marvelous!” she exclaimed, twirling around. 

Chameleon remained on the couch, unmoved and repeating in his mind what Giran had said. Undeniably, they really were going to go through with their massive attack on Yuuei, and now it was only a matter of time before this beautiful, shining kingdom would begin to see dark days.

-

Two weeks had now gone on by, and everyone in the castle was anything but still.

“Organize the halls in the south room for potential meetings!”

“Please create a guarding regimen that best meets the standards protection for all of our guests.”

“Polish all this furniture once more!”

“I swear, I think I saw Aizawa humming to himself in one the courtyards… Everyone is going crazy!”

“We need to come up with a menu that would satisfy living angels themselves!”

All of the personnel of the castle including soldiers, knights, cooks, officials, counts, and other staff were as busy as ants once the royal ball was a week away. It’s not as if they had barely began preparing for it, but once the date got closer and closer, it still seemed like there was so much to do.

The Yuuei castle had a great deal of inhabitants, most being scholars and officials that aid in running the kingdom. They all usually kept to the left wing of the castle, which really seemed like a castle of its own considering how large the section was. It was where All Might’s meeting hall, the court hall, and other professional areas resided. In the right wing were where most of the things like the infirmary, kitchens, casual halls and such were. 

The middle section of the castle was more for decor, being the tallest of all the sections yet mostly just being an area that had empty offices and was just used to walk between the right and left sections. Behind it stood another equally tall section of the castle, but this one was more important. It was quite far from the rest of the sections, though many hallways were still connected to it. This is where Midoriya and All Might had their bedrooms, on different floors respectively.

The first floor resembled that of the front section, being nothing more than a space to find hallways to get to the other sections of the castle. The second floor was dedicated to their collective massive library which was only open to them and important personnel, as well as a few halls and leisure rooms. The third floor belonged to Midoriya, which had his bedroom, bath room, actual bathroom, private library, office, and such. All Might had the same rooms in the fourth story, although he rarely spent time in them. 

Between all four buildings was their impressive garden, which made that clearing seem like a delicate jungle made up of the kingdoms most rare and beautiful plants and flowers. It was here that roasts and celebrations were held, tables and chairs of the finest materials being organized in midst of the plants. Most personnel came here to relax if they had a break between tasks, ogling whichever flower captured their eye while they thought about how to best become a powerful ally to the kingdom. Uraraka was one of them. 

There were also clearings in the middle of the right and left wings of the castle, which harbored enough trees to make them look like miniature parks. The staff working in said buildings would rest there, enjoying the cool drafts of wind breeze through the hallways and into the clearings. 

On the outer corners of the castle, diagonally behind the left and right wings, were small villages which is where the staff live. They’re usually lively on the days that the castle didn’t have too much business going on, which were mostly on holidays. Now though, with everything that’s been going on and how busy the kingdom was preparing for the ball, the villages were always quiet. 

The royal ball would be held in the topmost room of the middle section of the castle, which had the most windows, the most balconies, and the most room. It was built to harbor this very intention, and so it would be held here as other balls had been held in the previous years. 

Despite All Might being a popular and sought-out King, he had only ever hosted two balls during his reign, one of which was when he was accepting the crown, and another to supposedly find a potential spouse, which didn’t really work out. This would be the first time he would hold one for the sole purpose of making connections and meeting royals from neighboring kingdoms. And truthfully it wasn’t even for his sake, it was for Midoriya’s. 

Only the inhabitants of the castle knew this, so the rest of the world truly thought All Might finally had interest in them. Of course, almost all invitations that were sent out were accepted. Even the invitation that went to Flamuralis. 

 

“That’s it… stay in control… let it grow slowly…” Endeavor advised, watching the flames get bigger and brighter as they came out of Todoroki’s upper left body. 

“... It’s hot,” Todoroki muttered, releasing his power little by little. 

“That’s what your right side is for. While growing the fire on the left, you need to cool your temperature with the right side. It’s called homeostasis-“

“I know what it’s called,” Todoroki responded. 

“...Then why are you _still_ failing?” 

Todoroki sighed and let his flames go out. 

“What? Giving up already?” Endeavor taunted. 

“I am,” was all Todoroki said. As he cooled his internal body temperature, steam let off from his skin. 

“... I created you for one _sole_ purpose,” Endeavor began to speak. “My body is limited because I have no way to calm the heat that comes from my flames, but you. _You-”_

“I don’t want to hear your disgusting fantasy.“ 

Endeavor continued to stare at him anyways. “ _You_ have what I don’t. That’s why I chose your mother, and why _you_ will be the one to make our kingdom greater than that of Yuuei’s stupid king.” 

Todoroki remained quiet, choosing to ignore his old man’s taunts. 

Two weeks ago, Endeavor thought that he had finally figured out Todoroki’s weakness, which was threatening to do something to Rei. By doing that, Todoroki would immediately yield and follow orders. 

Turns out that Todoroki actually figured this out after Endeavor kept throwing insults around about Rei, so now he pretends to submit and follow orders to some degree to food his old man. What he’s really doing is postponing most training, figuring that showing his flames would keep Endeavor entertained for at least a few more weeks. After that, he’d have to think about something else. Anything else. 

“... We’re finished for today. After this you have a ballroom lesson to brush off your manners,” Endeavor said, turning to exit the room. “I’ll see you a few days from now,” Endeavor said next, exiting. 

_‘A few days?’_ Todoroki thought. There obviously had to be some catch or something, but right now he was too glad to think about any consequences. There was a only a week left for the ball, three of days which would be spent on traveling there, leaving only four days to prepare and brush up on noble behaviors. Thinking about it that way, it made sense that training would be suspended to focus on all that. 

After the lesson, Todoroki planned to see if Rei was coming along on the trip. During one of their meetings, she revealed that she saw her staying in the castle for life with seemingly no desire to travel anywhere, even with him, but she did give a bit of interest in Yuuei because of how wonderfully he talked about it. So there might be a chance.

With a steady argument in mind on why she should go, he picked up some of his clothing that he had left on the floor, and began to make his way to the room for his lesson. 

…

A considerable amount of time was spent in the etiquette session, making sure to review every action, conversational themes, baltzing patterns, and possible networking that would go on at the ball. Todoroki naturally breezed through everything, connecting some of the new material to what he had been taught before their first trip to Yuuei. The only difficult part seemed to be the baltzing… Todoroki just couldn’t seem to line up his steps in the correct order. He didn’t really fret about it though, since he already planned to stay away from anything that would imply dancing. Even if it was a ball, he planned to just connect more with Deku since he saw him as a valuable resource. He would definitely introduce Deku to Rei, and have her see why Todoroki harbored such a fondness towards Yuuei in such a short time. Maybe they could even sneak away to finish their spar…

“... You’re… not going?” 

“No...No, I’m afraid not.” 

Todoroki frowned. “Mother, really?” he asked again.

Reí nodded her head, blinking slowly. “I can’t. Not with…” she looked away, ashamed. The sadness Todoroki was expression was too much to handle. It’s as if his heart were shattered. 

“But mom, this a chance to travel together, and it’s to Yuuei, the most beautiful kingdom around us…”

“ _Our_ kingdom is beautiful,” she interjected. “I understand that it’s important to you but, as queen, it isn’t to me.” 

Todoroki pursed his lips. “As queen, you should take advantage of a situation like this, to scout and network with a kingdom as great as Yuuei.” 

Now she looked slightly annoyed. “What _is_ so great about Yuuei that’s gotten you to speak of them so highly?” She snapped. 

She… snapped. 

Todoroki was surprised, widening his eyes a bit. She had never snapped at him like that before. Although the statement wasn’t so harsh itself, it was odd that Todoroki’s eagerness to go to Yuuei bothered her. 

To him, it made no sense. Just a few weeks ago they were discussing the possibility of her finally leaving Flamuralis to travel about in Yuuei, thinking that keeping her cooped up in the castle was what was damaging her health, but now she’s completely opposing the idea. 

To her, it made perfect sense. Although she loved Shoto as much as her other children… he was changing. This change hadn’t occurred throughout the last couple of years or even months, but rather within the last three weeks. Ever since he returned from the last trip to Yuuei with Enji. She knew that Shoto began to use his left side… the side that could emit the same _despicable_ flames that his father does. 

Since then, she feels that he’s becoming more and more like him everyday. Perhaps not the same exact attitude, but the same type of persona. Capable of destroying anything in their way if they wished, just how Endeavor would do back when… 

What bothered her the most though was that left side of his, the side that had the same eye and hair as Enji. To her, it began to look unsightly, seeing in that side what she sees in Enji, and along with that, the emotions she has towards him. 

But this wasn’t Enji, this was her son…

“I’m… sorry,” she apologized. “Shoto… I hinted that I might go to make you feel better but I didn’t expect you to be so persistent… I just can’t go. Not with _him_.” 

Todoroki’s expression calmed down. So that’s why she didn’t want to go. 

“We can arrange different carriages, and even leave on different days. We can even order to not let him into our sights during the whole trip…” 

“Shoto, I’d just be a hindrance,” she said, negating his proposals. “This social ball is more important for you, an upcoming king, rather than an old queen like me. I’ve had my reign, and now it’s time to focus on yourself. Besides… with me there, you wouldn’t pay much attention to your newfound friends over there, would you?” 

That didn’t matter, Todoroki already knew how he was going to spend time with both his mother and his new friends. Things would also be less tense since they’d be there for a ball rather than official business like last time.

He was going to plead her once again, but the tired look in her eyes made him feel guilty. She really didn’t want to go. Todoroki couldn’t quite understand why, he knows about fear but that hasn’t stopped him from doing a majority of things, so the same should go for Rei. But whatever her reasons be, they were too complicated for Todoroki to comprehend.

He stepped back, disappointed but calm. “I… understand,” he said with a straight face, bowing. 

Although she felt pity in her heart, and felt the need to console her sadended son as his mother, she hesitated in raising her arms to give him a hug. She almost gave up on the action, but Todoroki had already noticed and walked over to accept her hug. 

Quiet she remained as she dug her head in his right shoulder, pleading the universe that when she’d open her eyes again, she’d see her son... only his side of her. 

-

Back at the Yuuei castle, Midoriya was furiously writing in his notebooks, generating enough noise to annoy Iida, who was organizing some of the books in Midoriya’s office. 

“You’re really sticking to this whole, ‘ _No time to waste’_ ideal huh?” Iida asked, removing some books from an upper shelf.

“Mm,” was all Midoriya replied, continuing on his quest to seemingly use up a whole jar of ink before the day was up. He had been like this ever since he got his hands on the assignment folders, stopping only when it was time for more of his etiquette lessons. After they were over he’d zoom right back to his room and get to work immediately.

Though he _was_ making considerable progress like this, it was Iida’s job to worry about him and stop him if he saw things were getting too out of hand. As it was now, Midoriya was really on the ropes by sleeping only a max of three hours a night. 

Once Iida had finished switching the books into the correct shelf, he faced Midoriya’s desk and cross his arms. He was coming up with something to say, something that would capture Midoriya’s attention enough to distract his mind for a little while, but a knock on the door prevented whatever it was was Iid had in mind.

“Uraraka here, your highness.”

“Come in,” Iida spoke for Midoriya, who hadn’t even looked up.

Uraraka swiftly walked in, first observing the newly organized shelves of books in the office. “Wooow, it looks different in here,” she praised, walking closer to Midoriya. The second thing she noticed was the redness of his hands, and the bags under his eyes. She turned slowly to Iida. “This is why I haven’t heard a peep from him for awhile, huh?” she asked.

Iida nodded. “He says he just wants to do his best but I feel that he’s just too nervous about the ball therefore distracting himself by over-working. I haven’t been able to get to him yet… got any ideas?”

Uraraka put a hand to her chin and hummed. “Mm… I never expected to hear that from you, you always get him out of everything. I _am_ thinking about one thing though…”

“Knock yourself out,” Iida encouraged her, knowing what she might be talking about.

She walked over to the corner of Midoriya’s desk and folded her hands behind her. “Midoriya…” she began to say in a pouty tone. “If you overwork your hands too much and they end up falling off, how do you expect to greet Todoroki when you see him?”

Midoriya looked up briefly. “Eh?” he asked, staring at her. “What are you talking about? My hands are fine…” he mumbled, focusing on his documents again.

“Ahh… I see,” she said backing away. “You plan to give him a hug instead this time, am I right?” 

Midoriya freezed for a second. Iida and Uraraka were anxiously waiting for his reaction, but to their surprise, he continued working once again after a few moments. 

“Maybe,” Midoriya responded, calming himself and saying whatever to get the two off his back.

“Hmm… Too busy to even think about it huh? Alright… I’ll go tell him…” she trailed off, moving towards the door.

Now _this_ caught his attention. “W-Wait,” Midoriya called after her. She paused to listen, so he continued. “He’s really here? Now? Why wasn’t I informed they’d arrive so early…” he muttered, closing the books on his desk.

Now, Uraraka had said that last thing as a last-resort attempt to distract him, but she didn’t _actually_ think it’d work. Iida and her exchanged puzzled looks, since Iida too hadn’t expected him to fall for that so easily. He supposed that they had to owe it to Midoriya’s sleep deprivation. 

“Oh… I thought one of the messenger had come to relay that message earlier… my my… you don’t even look the slightest bit presentable right now,” Uraraka went along with her lie. Midoriya legitimately looked worried and ready to go tidy up for the sake of seeing his friend who’s not actually there. 

Even Iida looked like he had a guilty face, but he seemed to be playing along too since he began to help Midoriya put the books into his desk. “I’ll prepare the items for your bath,” he said immediately after, leaving Midoriya and Uraraka behind. 

Having succeeded but feeling guilty, Uraraka considered breaking the lie, but she convinced herself that Midoriya really did need the break. She planned to tell him after the bath, that way he’ll be taking a break for at least an hour.

Once they were in the hallway, he yawned and stretched his arms. “...I know he’s not really here,” he said calmly, crossing his arms behind his head and continuing to walk. 

Uraraka quickly turned to look at him, surprised by the revelation. It really made sense though, when it really came down to things, Midoriya was superior than both her and Iida in intelligence, even though people always assume Iida is the more tactful one. 

Despite this, Uraraka was not disappointed at all that Midoriya caught onto the lie. It made her feel a bit better, actually. 

“Well, I’m glad you acknowledged that you need a break at least,” she responded, exhaling slowly. 

“Yeah… my hands actually do hurt a little… have you ever heard of carpal tunnel?” he asked as he flexed his hands in front of him.

“I do,” Uraraka responded. “Some of the nobles go to the infirmary for it every so often, don’t they?” 

“Mmhmm,” Midoriya confirmed. “It’s scary to think about, it’d be a real hindrance you know?”

“It would,” Uraraka agreed. “Mm.. What gave me away?” she asked next, changing the subject since she was curious. He had really convinced them that he was clueless. 

Midoriya chuckled a little. “Well, you gave yourself away.”

“...Eh? I did?” Uraraka asked, confused. 

Midoriya looked around the hallway, finally resting his eyesight by closing his eyes while walking. “I kinda did believe you, considering that’s what happened the first time he came here. Iida seemed _too_ clueless when he heard your news too, since he’s the one who knows all of the steps and thoughts of those here in the castle,” he paused to chuckle again. “But you just gave up after I said it was fake. It was just a bluff, but you confirmed the lie. I appreciate the thought though, I know both you and Iida and worried, though I don’t know for what.” 

Uraraka sighed. “You’re still capable of outwitting me despite your lack of sleep and intense focus on those reports,” she said with a defeated smile. “You know, everyday you just keep growing and growing your potential. Even though you won’t be recognized as the crown prince at this upcoming ball, it’s still exciting to know that you’ll be meeting people that’ll become your trade partners and allies in the future. For some reason, I get really happy when I think about the day you’ll finally be known as the Prince. You won’t be stuck in this castle anymore.”

Midoriya smiled. Uraraka seemed to want to get some praise out of her chest. “I appreciate that, Uraraka. It… get more real as the days go by too. This ball is just another stepping stone to help me get where I really want to be. I don’t know about not being stuck in the castle though… you see how All Might is.”

Uraraka put a hand to her chin. “I get where you’re coming from but if anything, I feel that he’s busy laying out the groundwork for you. He’ll be known as a king that bettered the kingdom from within it, and you’ll excel at building relationships with our neighboring kingdoms.” She shrugged. “That’s what it seems like to me. That and I don’t think he personally likes to go out much,” she stuck her tongue out playfully. 

“I like that explanation,” Midoriya offered. Then something else came to mind. “By the way, it seems that it’s become a tactic for you and Iida often mention Todoroki when it comes to various things… you'll really never let that go huh?” 

Now Uraraka was the one giggling. “Truthfully, no we won't. It’s entertaining to see how you two react with each other. You seem to get a long a little _too_ well, but I mean he _is_ one of the few people that you’ve met who’s from another kingdom. That and he _is_ a prince. Sooner or later, you two would have met, though under different circumstances. For now, I’m glad we can at least seem to trust one of our neighboring kingdom’s future king. The Grasslands though… I’m not to sure about their prince.”

“Ah, Kacchan?” Midoriya asked. 

“Bakugo, yeah,” Uraraka corrected him. “Speaking of which, they’re coming too aren’t they?”

“Mmhmm, Iida told me about it the day their invitation came in. It’s been awhile since I’ve last seen Kacchan… from what I hear, it seems that he hasn’t changed much from what I remember him being.”

Stubborn, mean, rude, crazy powerful, and smart are just a few things that Midoriya remembered about Bakugo. 

“I don’t hear too much about stuff from over there when I’m out in the villages, but yeah, he seems to be following the queen’s footsteps,” Uraraka informed.

Before they knew it, they had made it to Midoriya’s room. It was a rather short walk, since his room is just on the other side of the floor from the office, but his and Uraraka’s conversation was subtly important. With all the news arriving about the guests, the preparation for the ball, and focusing on his reports about Flamuralis, Midoriya forgets every now and then that he _is_ a future prince, the rightful successor of a blooming kingdom. Though he already knows so much, there’s still much _much_ more for him to learn. It really helps thats Iida and Uraraka are there to keep him grounded, which is what makes their friendship so important. Sooner or later, he’ll be able to thank them properly for how much they’ve been positively impacting his life. 

Uraraka dismissed herself once Iida had told them that the bath was ready. “Well, I just wanted to check on you during these crazy times. I have my fair share of work too, so I probably won’t see you two until the day before the ball. Don’t make Iida worry too much,” she said with a wink.

“I’ll try,” Midoriya replied with a half smile. With that, she was off to her own tasks, and Midoriya went to enjoy his bath.

-

“That’s… actually a good plan,” Chameleon complimented.

“All thanks to me” Dabi responded. 

“Good but… it sounds like so much work. Hey hey, will I really see _that_ much blood?” Toga asked.

“So much that it’ll make you go _insane_ ,” Dabi offered.

Toga laughed. “Dabi, you know I already am,” she said as she kept giggling. 

“Anyhow, Muscular doesn’t have a role this time?” Chameleon asked Dabi. 

“Muscular… that buffon,” Dabi spit. “He won’t be joining us for a while... that idiot is where he belongs right now.”

_‘Charred and burned to a crisp,’_ Dabi thought to himself. 

“I’m glad,” Toga sighed. “He was kinda scary.”

“Pretty annoying too… all he would do is mess up the plans,” Giran said next. Per usual, he took a huge whiff of his cigarette and blew it into the air. “Well, I’m glad we got that sorted. Toga, you understand how heavily this plan depends on you, right?”

“Of courseeeee~,” she sang. “They won’t suspect a thing,” she said with an evil smile.

“You sound pretty confident. Hope it doesn’t bite you in the ass,” Dabi deadpanned.

“Dabi, you’re always so positive,” she sang again, beginning to polish one of her knives.

“Anyways, so get yourselves ready and meet back here the night before the ball. I’ll let you know when guests starts arriving…” Giran said, he said, exiting the room.

“Well, imma go eat,” Toga mumbled as her stomach grumbled, also leaving their meeting place. 

“Can’t believe shit is actually starting to go down,” Dabi spoke in a dull tone. 

“Yeah… the people here really don’t suspect anything… not even the king, despite being proclaimed the most powerful king Yuuei has ever had. I’m really curious to see how far we’ll actually get.” Chameleon added. 

“If the people here are as stupid and careless as the boss suggested, then we won’t have any trouble. Sad too, cause’ I actually like it when a fight is put up… I’m gonna sleep,” Dabi finished talking, getting up and walking into another room. 

\-----

Well, if the week before the ball was plenty chaotic, the day _before_ the ball was to some other _degree_ of chaotic. Today was the day when most of the guests from further away would arrive, to relax from their trip and prepare for the ball the next day. Such guests included the guests from Calabasas, perhaps the most important guests mind you, some from Pantillion which was a kingdom further below Flamuralis that was separated by the sea, others from Atlanta which was the kingdom on Yuuei’s east that was separated by the huge lake that harbored Midoriya’s favorite food, and- oh right, Flamuralis.

“Midoriya, they’re here,” Iida announced after he dismissed the messenger. 

Midoriya was lying face up on his bed, staring into the sky through his giant sky light. “Are they really? Or is this another scheme to get me out of bed? I’m relaxing as you want me to…”

“It’s the real deal,” Iida said with a laugh. “So what’ll be your disguise this time?”

“Hmm…” Midoriya hummed. “Well I was a scholar last time… I can pretend to be his assigned servant for the day. It’d make sense since he’d guess I’m knowledgeable enough to do the job,” he said, getting up. 

“A personal servant huh?” Iida repeated. “That wouldn’t be so bad I guess, I can accept you doing that. Especially since he doesn’t seem to care about status. Wouldn’t Endeavor recognize you though?”

“I doubt it. When he caught us in the room last time, he didn’t spare a look at anyone but Uraraka and Todoroki. At the time it kinda made me mad, but I suppose it was a good thing after all,” Midoriya replied. 

“I see… Well,” he turned to the Adeline and Alice who were on standby in the room, “You can dress him normally as usual.”

“Very well,” they both responded, rushing over to one of the wardrobes in the room.

Iida then turned back to Midoriya. “So, you’ll come with me to receive them and then I’ll introduce your role. If I may ask, what do you plan to do first?”

The aides had already began dressing Midoriya. Once his upper garments were on, he responded, “I figured you'd be too busy for us to follow you around, so I think I’ll just take him on a tour of the castle… Actually I had promised to show him our library the first day we met and we never got around to it, so we’ll be there first if you need us for anything.”

“Sounds good,” Iida replied. 

Alice and Adeline finished their duty, bowed, and left the room. 

Iida took one last look around the room before pulling out a pocket watch and observing the time. “Shall we go, my prince?” he asked, reaching for the door. 

“Prince?” Midoriya repeated, stepping out into the hallway. 

“Ah, I wanted to get that out of my system since you’ll be addressed as “Deku” for the next couple of days.”

Midoriya chuckled. “Alright,” was all he said.

The two walked among each other quietly as they made their way from Midoriya’s room to the front of the primary section of the castle. 

Despite what he told himself, Midoriya did feel a bit nervous to see Todoroki again. The last time they saw each other was about a month ago, and they hadn’t left off on very good terms. Todoroki had been taken from him a second time. Though Todoroki discouraged Midoriya from worrying about him, Midoriya couldn’t help but wonder what repercussions he might be facing because of his disobedience to Endeavor. 

It seemed that it was in Todoroki’s nature to be rebellious and cunning, but was it worth facing the consequences every time?

Other than that, Midoriya still couldn’t wait to see him. He thought back to when they first met, back when he mistook Todoroki for a cold and rude scholar. Some things he’d say still sound unintentionally rude, but he's definitely not cold-hearted. His cunning yet oblivious personality, the charming features on his face, the sharpness in his eyes, and the ambition he seemed to have; Midoriya wanted it all. He can’t deny what he felt after they first got to know each other, and what he had been feeling all this time. 

Undeniably they did meet because of fate, like Todoroki had suggested when they were together in the baths. Midoriya was too embarrassed back then to think too much about what Todoroki had meant, but as of late its began to make sense. It’s the only way he can explain why Todoroki had made an appearance in his dreams before he had met him, and why Todoroki had also explained that he mutters the name ‘Midoriya’ in his sleep despite not knowing Deku’s true identity. It’s also the only way Midoriya understands why he gets indescribable feelings around him, and secretly yearns to be in his presence. 

Remembering all these things put a huge smile on MIdoriya’s face, and now Iida and him stood at the gates of the castle, prepared to be reunited with their unlikely friend. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ok with great honor, i present to you what will be in the next chapter: TODODEKU   
> yasss finally, these two haven't seen each other in 7 chapters, what a tragedy  
> I wonder how their pre-ball day will go?


	18. Todoroki's Arrival

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Todoroki finally arrives at Yuuei! With Endeavor right? Or so everyone thought...

“I announce the arrival of the guests from Flamuralis,” One of Iida’s guards announced. Behind him was a luxurious looking carriage, which is what Todoroki and Endeavor were expected to arrive in.

Iida stood in front of everybody, since he would be the one to greet them first. Midoriya stood slightly behind him in line with the rest of the guards, but still had a view of the arriving guests. 

After Midoriya had come up with the idea to be Todoroki’s ‘Tour guide’’ for the ball, he and Iida went to propose it directly to All Might. At first All Might was hesitant to accept the request, since he had planned to have Midoriya at his side during the entirety of the ball since, you know, this whole thing was organized solely for the purpose of introducing royals from all kingdoms to Midoriya. It seemed sort of selfish for Midoriya to want to stay by Todoroki instead, since in a way he would be neglecting his duties. 

So All Might was prepared to deny the request, but before he was able to do so, the night from long ago when Midoriya swore to ‘save’ Todoroki came to mind. Back then, there was an obvious worry and resolve to do something about Todoroki’s situation, which ended up with All Might encouraging Midoriya that if he really tried and wanted to, he could. Now that resolve was making its presence, and it would be too harsh to decline it. 

It _had_ been a while since the two last saw each other, or at least that’s what All Might thought since all details of Todoroki joining Midoriya’s crew during the first two days of their journey was excluded from the reports. 

The final decision was that Midoriya was allowed to accompany Todoroki on the day before the ball, but on the day of the ball he was to strictly only able be with Todoroki if the young prince was networking with other royals, providing the same opportunity to learn about royals to some degree as if he were with All Might. If not, Midoriya was to stay at All Might’s side no matter what. This whole thing was a opportunity to learn after all. 

And so now, Midoriya stood with a determined expression as Todoroki came out of the carriage first. 

Despite Iida being the one closest to Todoroki, and despite the tens of other people that were within Todoroki’s line of sight, him and Midoriya locked eyes as soon as they saw each other. 

The first thing that came to mind for Midoriya was how happy he was to see his friend again, but something about him seemed different. He figured he’d think about that later, and instead focused on his joy for their reunion. 

Todoroki gave him a small smile, and then finally focused on Iida to greet him, who had realized why Todoroki seemed distracted. 

“Welcome back to Yuuei, Prince Shoto,” Iida greeted whilst bowing. “I pray your journey was enjoyable and peaceful,” he said next. According to the reports that had been steadily coming in every two hours thanks to their communication system, their journey seemed to have been just that. 

“Thank you, Iida,” Todoroki responded. He felt happy to see Iida too. “It was. The sights on the way here will forever hold my interest.” 

Iida smiled. “I’m glad our kingdom provides you with such pleasantness. His highness, the king, wishes his greetings and blessings as you make your residence in this castle for the next few days. You and…” he paused, looking at the carriage to see if anyone else had stepped out. 

To everyone’s surprise, the big, angry-looking King of Flamuralis didn’t step out. Instead, a beautiful black-haired woman began to step out, planting one foot firmly on the ground and looking up to find that she had everyone’s undivided attention. Even Midoriya’s. 

She briskly walked up besides Todoroki, and bowed to Iida. 

_Who_ in the _hell_ was _she_?

Midoriya excused his inner thoughts’ language, and his brain scrambled to come up with an answer. Todoroki’s mother, maybe? No, it can’t be because she looks far too young. She seems about Todoroki’s age, so maybe she might be a sibling? But the black hair wouldn’t make sense, supposedly all of the members of their family and royalty had red in their hair, so that wasn’t it. 

After a few more guesses, his thoughts settled on one _undesirable_ answer. She seemed of Todoroki’s age, and was undoubtedly one of the most beautiful woman he had ever seen in his life. Her skin, her clothes, and her demeanor screamed royalty. It made sense that only a partner or spouse-to-be would have of these perfect qualities. 

Midoriya’s heart sank. This couldn’t be, right? Todoroki never mentioned anything about finding a partner when they were last together. As far as Midoriya was concerned, Todoroki was the least bit interested in relationships like he was. But maybe now, that wasn’t the case. After all, it was common for royal members to find their spouses young. 

Was this the consequence of a punishment from Endeavor? Had he forced Todoroki into a royal engagement with her? Todoroki was too handsome for anyone to decline a marriage proposal from him… 

But why was any of this bothering Midoriya, who was only his friend? 

While he was busy over-thinking himself to death, he had completely missed her introduction while she spoke to Iida. Now he really _was_ clueless, and that last answer he had come up with wouldn’t let him rest. 

“Shall I guide you to your rooms?” Iida asked, stepping aside. 

Now Midoriya was able to get a complete, up front view of the woman. She really was _perfect_. 

“Please follow me,” Iida said as he began to turn around to lead them into the castle’s big red doors. 

The guards that were standing behind Iida bowed, which also was the cue for Midoriya to bow, except he was too busy thinking about the sense of doom overtaking all of his thoughts. 

When the group approached him, he didn’t say anything or move out of their way. It took a stern ‘ahem’ from Iida to get him to come to his senses, and then he politely bowed. 

“Welcome, your highness,” he said to Todoroki, keeping his gaze on the floor. About five seconds of an overly-long silence followed, all in which Todoroki didn’t move at all either. 

Midoriya didn’t pick up his head until the black-haired woman cleared her throat, then saying, “Shall we continue?” Her hand gently nudged Todoroki’s arm, a gesture that made Midoriya feel _weird_. 

“Is something wrong, Deku?” Todoroki had asked before they kept moving. 

Midoriya looked at him in the eyes again, and brushed away his childish feelings. “N-nothing at all, your highness,” he said in a shaky tone, bowing once more before trailing behind Iida. 

Something felt off to Todoroki. 

Iida continued to walk into the castle, beginning to lead them to the third floor in the main section castle, which is where most of the guests would be staying. The space between each floor in this section was larger than the other sections, meaning the noise from the ball, which would be held on the 6th floor, wouldn’t disturb the guests in case they retired from the ball early. These rooms were also the biggest, though they were always empty. Hopefully the cleaning staff did a good job at tidying them up. 

While going up the first set of stairs, the silence was broken by the woman. 

“Deku?” She suddenly asked, in such a calm manner. 

The way she said his alias sounded so melodious that a shiver ran down his back, making the hairs on his neck stand as he turned around to face who had called him. 

She wasn’t addressing him though, and was instead looking at Todoroki. Midoriya quickly turned back and kept walking, the same childish feelings from earlier returning to him. 

“You know him from before?” She asked.

“I do,” Todoroki replied. “I’ve spoken about him many times, don’t you remember?” 

Ah, so Todoroki’s been talking about him back at his castle? But Midoriya was so insignificant, he felt like he was nothing compared to his bodacious partner, so why would Todoroki even bother mentioning their time together? 

“Ah… If I recall, every encounter with him you’ve spoken about ends up in an altercation with the King,” she said in a factly manner. “That’s what I remember.”

 _‘Well, she’s right about that’_ Midoriya thought. The first time they met, Endeavor had crashed their little celebration and ended up… 

Midoriya didn’t want to remember that. 

The second time on the balcony, and the third time in the baths luckily didn’t involve the king, but the fourth time when the King personally went to Sato’s base to pick up Todoroki, Midoriya didn’t know what had happened after that. He also didn’t even know about the gruesome promise Todoroki made to Endeavor in order to attend this ball… 

It was no matter the woman sounded mad. Midoriya figured he would be too, if he was anyone important to the prince. 

“I thought you were sharp enough to remember all the details of my stories,” Todoroki said, unbothered. 

The woman didn’t respond this time, staying silent as they continued to walk. 

Speaking like that to a future spouse… was it okay? Midoriya shivered again. By now he had known that Todoroki was pretty stoic, which would make his responses sound rude at times, but he still couldn't help but think, ‘ _Todoroki…’_ he thought. ‘ _Don’t tell me your tastes run in **that** direction.’_

Todoroki sighed. “If you must know, he’s a scholar from here that I met during my first trip here. He has exemplary knowledge, and taught me several things the last time we saw each other. He’s a worthy resource, and my first _friend_.” 

Todoroki smiled after he had called Midoriya his friend once again, remembering the confusing reaction he had gained in return the first time time he had said it.

Right now for some reason, Midoriya didn’t share the same fond reminiscing that Todoroki was doing. 

“It is a humble request from our king to let Midoriya accompany you during your time here, since you’d be most comfortable with him. Apart from being one of our most treasured scholars, he provides exceptional accompany,” Iida explained. Now they were on the third floor, being led directly to the room now. 

“If he’s such a resourceful scholar, does he really have such idle time to be a guests servant?” The woman asked. 

Iida frowned, though no one saw. It bothered him that she said that, since Midoriya really _despises_ idle time, so much to the point where he is unhealthily obsessed with overworking. Hearing what she had just said would undoubtedly bother Midoriya and make him question himself. 

Unlike Midoriya though, he knew who she was, and he understood why she was acting harsh towards Midoriya. 

“Here at Yuuei, we work diligently enough to both keep ahead of our tasks and help out anywhere in our castle. Deku has been working hard studying your kingdom’s history since Todoroki last departed, and so now he is sacrificing time to accompany your prince and ensure that he enjoy his time here in Yuuei’s castle to its fullest,” Iida replied. 

His remark succeeding in quieting the girl, allowing the group to continue on their way in silence.

They had made it to the room, finally, and the room was opened for Todoroki and his partner go into the room. 

“Beautiful,” Todoroki said first, praising the room as his eyes trailed along the decor in it. This room was beautiful enough to compete against his own room back in Flamuralis, which was impressive because the castle of Flamuralis was known for its excessive and grand decor. He gazed up at the skylight last, observing the light pouring into the room from it. 

Across the door on the other side of the room was a vast balcony, which reminded Todoroki about the room last time, and when Deku had flung himself from a balcony above him to chat the morning after they met. The memory made Todoroki smirk to himself. 

Midoriya saw and questioned why Todoroki was smirking. Actually, he desired to know about _anything_ that Todoroki was thinking about, since a month had passed since they last spoke, but everytime he thought about the woman who accompanied him, it made him unable to speak with Todoroki normally like he used to. 

“It’s bigger than the last room, isn’t it?” Todoroki asked, walking over to the bed. 

“It is,” Iida responded, observing Midoriya. He looked… bad. “Last time, you arrived at a moments notice, so we prepared hastily what we had,” he continued to explain. 

“I see,” was all Todoroki said. 

Iida walked over to the right side of the room, to what looked like a door, and opened it. “This will be Yaoyorozu’s room,” he said, gesturing in it so the woman could see it. 

‘ _Yaoyorozu…!’_ Midoriya exclaimed to himself. He had finally found out her name, at least. It didn’t ring any bells though, so her identity and _what_ she was to Todoroki, was still a mystery. 

“It’s equally beautiful,” she said, walking into it. 

Back in Midoriya’s mind, everything he was seeing was tragically setting in. Of _course_ they had connecting rooms, why else would they? It made perfect sense, this way whenever they wanted to meet during the day… or during the night… they could. And they should. Who would stop them? That’s what couples did after all… 

It was _agony. Agony_ was what Midoriya was feeling as he stood quiet as ever by the door. 

He looked to the right and saw that Todoroki was apparently staring at him, but he couldn’t think of of a word to say. He was left dumbfounded by his overthinking, and was letting himself get hurt by a situation that wasn’t even true. 

His hung his said and figured it was best to leave Todoroki and, what he thinks is, his spouse.

Iida stood with his arms crossed in Todoroki’s room. “These connecting rooms are useful for guests like yourselves, since you are his-“

“Excuse me, your highness... Iida,” Midoriya choked out, interrupting Iida. “I need to… go,” he said quickly, turning to leave the room at once. 

Midoriya was gone before Iida even had the chance to ask him what was going on, but he had noticed how distressed Midoriya sounded. Iida hadn’t connected the dots yet, so he was still confused as to why Midoriya was acting so strange. 

“Why has he left?” Todoroki asked, disappointed with Midoriya’s departure. 

“Ah he...” Iida began to respond, fixing his glasses. “He… is probably not feeling well. He would never abandon his duty and a chance to spend time with you,” was the lie he came up with. 

Todoroki began to study the contents of a desk that was near his bedside, finding an empty journal and some books about Yuuei. “He’s been acting strange, has he been like that?” 

“He is… strange,” Yaoyorozu also commented, re-entering Todoroki’s bedroom. “That aside, thank you for these room arrangements, Iida. It’ll be much easier to keep an eye on my aloof Prince like this,” she joked, flashing a mocking smile at Todoroki. 

Iida chuckled. “You’re very welcome. I know the feeling,” he admitted. 

Yaoyorozu’s eyes suddenly grew sharp. “Oh, you do?” She questioned. “You take care of a troublesome Prince as well?” 

_‘Keen’_ Iida thought. “I do not,” he negated her suspicion. “It’s more of a troublesome friend,” he said, smiling. He figured that now it was time to give some attention to the ‘friend in question’ and ask what the heck was going on with him. 

“Prince Todoroki, Knight Yaoyorozu, I will leave you to relax and settle into your new rooms. I will have servants posted by the door to take care of anything you need. You may also ask them to explore the castle…” _‘Even though that was Midoriya’s job…’,_ he thought. “I will be attending some of my own matters, but if you need me for anything, the servants can bring you to me. I… apologize for Deku’s absence. He really _has_ been working hard since you left, maybe it’s been difficult for him to relax,” he said in Todoroki’s direction. 

“It does seem like he’s capable of being like that,” Todoroki responded. “It’s no problem, I am not angered. Yaoyorozu doesn’t like him though,” he said, gazing at her with an uninterested look. 

She rested her hands on her hips and looked away. “It’s not that I don’t like him, you just always end up in trouble with you’re with him. If anything, I’m disappointed in _you,_ Todoroki,” she said. 

_‘So they’re close enough for her to address him without any honorifics,’_ Iida observed. 

“And no matter how many times they get in trouble, they continue to do so, even if it’s against their well-being, don’t they?” Iida added. 

Yaoyorozu laughed. “Exactly! Other see Todoroki as some stoic and well-grounded prince. I _wish_ ,” she said, taunting. “It seems that I won’t be able to relax for the rest of my life as his guard,” she said, putting a hand on his shoulder. “But I wouldn’t want it any other way.” 

Todoroki’s expression looked bored, and he faced the other side of the room. 

Iida chuckled again. This sounded _exactly_ like him and Midoriya. It was amusing to see what it looked like to other people. 

“I’m glad you’re able to speak to me with such confidence,” Iida replied. 

Yaoyorozu suddenly blushed, covering her mouth with the hand that was on Todoroki’s shoulder. 

“Oh… oh my… I’m sorry for speaking so loosely,” she apologized. Really, she had never spoken to _anyone_ about how her and Todoroki got along. In their castle, everyone just acknowledged that she was super protective of him, not letting anyone show him the slightest bit of disrespect, which is why she had a grudge against the King, Endeavor, for how he treated Todoroki. 

To guests, she would appear the same, showing that she had a strong yet ultra respectful relationship with him as his personal guard. It was odd that she let her mouth run right now. 

“I told you, there’s something extraordinary about this place,” Todoroki said, retreating to sit on the bed once again. 

“Seems like a curse…” Yaoyorozu replied, embarrassed. 

Iida was being every entertained. “I assure you, Yaoyorozu, what you confide to me in this castle will stay in this castle. I am no foe of yours, neither to your kingdom.” 

Yaoyorozu was calmed by Iida’s words. He was quite charming when she thought about it. “Thank you Iida,” she said. “Todoroki mentioned how positive and earnest this kingdom was, and now I can see why he was charmed by your people and this kingdom.” 

“It’s thanks to Deku, too,” Todoroki said from the bed. He was already lying down. 

“Ah… Deku… I expected more of him, especially since he’s the subject of most of your conversations. He seemed… off didn’t he? Even for somebody that I don’t know, you could tell,” Yaoyorozu explained as she sat on a cushioned chair. 

“He was probably intimidated, you do have a scary face after all,” Todoroki shot off. 

Yaoyorozu looked at the bed, annoyed. 

 

 _‘They really **are** like us,’ _Iida thought to himself. He knew that if he stayed any longer, it’d get harder to separate from them. Despite being warned about the people from Flamuralis, he was actually very much liking the two that were here right now. 

“Well,” he said finally, “I will take my leave. Enjoy your time before the ball, and I hope to see you soon.” 

The woman bowed. “Our humble thanks to the you and especially to the king for giving us such extravagant rooms and greeting us with the very capable personnel of this castle. I bid you farewell and prosperity in your tasks.” 

Ah… wow that… sounded very nice. 

“Thank you,” was all Iida responded. If he wanted, they could probably have a praising-duel. He was like her, after all. Strong, charismatic, keen, capable, almost everything. She just seemed more playful with Todoroki than he was with Midoriya, perhaps because she’s a woman. 

It was also sort of strange, the whole her being a woman guard. As far as Iida knows, only royal women _sometimes_ have women as their personal servants or such, but never as a _guard_ or _knight_. This very much intrigued Iida, but again, he would find time to talk with him once his business was done. He could only hope that that time would come soon.

He bowed one last time as he may his way out of the room and to the court to announce the arrival of Todoroki, but not the king, Endeavor. 

In the hallway he began to think about how strange that was, since the response in the invitation made it seem like he _was_ coming. At the time, Iida thought it was strange for someone like Endeavor to agree to make an appearance at a social ball, and he was right to think suspiciously of it. This means that something must’ve came up, making him stay behind.

As much as he was liking the heir of Flamuralis, he would definitely bring this up in his meeting with the court. Maybe they were already a step ahead of him and know what’s going on. 

These thoughts resided as he got closer to his destination, and he finally remembered about Midoriya. 

_“_ Crap…” he said to himself. He hadn’t seen where Midoriya went off to, and now there was no time to look for him. 

Seriously, what was up with him? Looking like he was going through a crisis when he met Todoroki and his guard Yaoyorozu, and then running off when he’s supposed to be attending to Todoroki’s needs because he _wanted_ to? But that was before, maybe he had a change of mind… or something… 

Again, this was another matter that he had to put behind him for now. Taking care of Midoriya is his utmost priority, but on a day like today, he had to let Midoriya figure himself out alone. 

-

“So how was it?” 

“Big. Beautiful.” 

“Okay, nice description moron. I mean, did you see what you needed to see?” 

“Oh, yes. I got all the looks I needed,” Xerex informed.

“Good. So…” 

“Phase two!!” Toga exclaimed as she jumped. “Where are we gonna peek from now?” 

Dabi looked at the map below them. “From here,” he said, pointing to a clearing on the mountain where the castle was. “I’m sure it’s heavily guarded now, but once it get closer to the ball, everyone will be busy with it and that’ll us the chance.” 

“So… we’re seriously putting all our luck into her, huh?” Chameleon asked, gesturing at Toga, who was sharpening a knife before tucking it into her sock. 

“Why… you got a problem?” Dabi asked sternly. “I’m sure the boss would _love_ to hear last minute complaints…” 

“No, no. Nothing here,” Chameleon quickly said. “Just wanted to make sure you _knew_ what you were doing here.” 

“I’ll tell you what…” a voice suddenly came from the shadows of a nearby open door. “You disregard the plan one more time, and you’ll be choking on your own ashes,” the voice threatened as it got closer. 

Through the screen of darkness from the door, a figure began to come out, a hand first appearing before anything else. 

Dabi rolled his eyes, Toga let out a squeal, and everyone else watched the figure in shock. 

The rest of the figures’ body emerged, and they realized who it was. 

Light blue colored hair, scrawny limbs, clothes that haven’t been washed in a _very_ long time, and signature red shoes. Shigaraki had finally made his appearance. 

Chameleon trembled, realizing his doubt might be the cause of his demise. “I apologize, boss,” he said, attempting to win Shigaraki’s favor once again. 

“Not to me, to the brat,” Shigaraki said, pointing to Toga. 

Chameleon swallowed slowly, and turned to her. “I’m sorry… Toga.” 

“Apology…. accepted!” She exclaimed, giving him a hug. Suddenly her grip got tight, and she looked at him from under his chin. “But if you’re really sorry Chamelly, you can let me stab ya a few times. Just for fun!” 

“Isn’t that what you’re gonna do anyways?” Dabi asked, taking a seat on the couch. 

“Oh! That’s right.” Toga remembered. She needed more of his blood to use his invisibility and sneak into the castle to get blood from more people this time, preferably servants since they’d be the least people would worry about. 

“As long as you don’t fuck up the carpet,” Shigaraki announced, sitting at one of the stools that was set up in front of a bar. 

“Let’s go to the bathroom then!” Toga quickly proposed, grabbing Chameleons arms and leading him to the bathroom. 

Chameleon, meanwhile, looked very displeased. 

“Things are starting to come together, huh?” Giran, who was standing by the door, asked. His question was directed to Shigaraki. 

“It is,” Shigaraki responded. “I finally came like you asked, too. Do I get a reward?” 

Giran laughed. “ _This_ is your reward,” He explained, extending his arms and gesturing at the room. “You get to spend time with your team.” 

“ _Team?_ ” Shigaraki repeated. He looked over at Dabi, who was picking his ear, then at Xerex who was staring at the wall, and then at Mineta, who was anxiously biting his fingers. 

“Charming.” Was all he said, focusing on a TV that was hung up on one of the walls. “You’re sure this is going to work, father?” He asked it. 

Static was heard for a few seconds, but soon a voice started to come out of the TV’s speaker, despite it saying that there was no signal. 

“Shigaraki, you must be able to analyze the success rate of your own mission, and know how capable your team members are,” was what the person on the other side of the TV said. 

Shigaraki clicked his teeth. “I _know_. But I’m asking you,” 

“I have faith in you, and you alone. You chose each of these subordinates yourself, now you must trust that you picked them right,” the person advised. 

Shigaraki hung his head. “Then this will work. Im able to do all of this because of _you_ ,” he told the voice. 

“And _I_ do everything for _you,_ ” it responded. 

“...How touching,” Dabi chimed in, being finished with cleaning his ears. 

The voice cleared it’s throat. “Well, finish your preparations. I will be watching.” And then the TV began to spill out static again. 

Toga and Chameleon stumbled out the bathroom together, Chameleon looking completely pale meanwhile Toga dance around with a bright red jar. 

“Well, I suggest you go over everything again, for the sake of the plans accuracy,” Giran said, lighting a cigarette. 

“He’s right,” Dabi encouraged. “We’ll get this right, especially since we don’t have that annoying buffun with us anymore.” 

“Call him all the names you want, he’s still essential to the third part of our plan,” Shigaraki explained. 

“Blah blah,” Dabi said, uninterested. “That bucket of no-brains got what he deserved, but don’t worry boss, I left him charred enough to be able to come back when we need him.” 

“Ah, so that’s how your useless quarrel ended?” Giran asked. 

Dabi shrugged. “He wasn’t dead,” was all he responded with. 

“Alright, alright, let’s go over this one more time…” Shigaraki began. 

-

“Midoriya…?” 

“H-Hi, Uraraka,” Midoriya greeted, standing awkwardly outside her office room. “Um… is it okay if I come inside?” 

“Yeah, of course,” she said, stepping aside to let him walk into her office. 

“I was just going to see you, Todoroki arrived already right?” She asked as she saw him take a seat on one of her couches. 

“Yeah but… I don’t want to talk about him,” Midoriya said honestly. 

“Eh? Where’s that coming from?” She asked, walking over to him. 

She finally saw his face, and it was full of dread. “Midoriya… what’s wrong?” She asked, taking a seat beside him. 

“Nothing… it’s nothing. Let’s just… talk about something. Anything,” he said, his eyes downcast. 

Uraraka frowned. What was he bothered about? She wanted to ask again, but it really seemed like it hurt to talk about the subject. She looked around her room, trying to come up with another topic of conversation. 

“Mm… how have the…” she was going to say Flamuralis lessons, but then she figured that would end up making him think about Todoroki again. “The… your mother hasn’t sent a letter back, has she?” She ended up saying. 

“Oh… nothings come in yet?” He asked, finally picking up his head. 

“Nope, nothing. I’ve gone out during our meeting time every day and Tokoyami’s dark shadow doesn’t appear. He’s probably been busy lately, he said some letters might get backtracked if his schedule gets hectic,” she informed him. 

“Ah, I see...” Midoriya trailed off. “What exactly _is_ it that Tokoyami does?” 

Uraraka looked at the ceiling. “He’s a traveler, I think he was supposed to go to Tsuyu’s kingdom around this time, so that’s why he hasn’t been able to reach your mom for her letter.” 

“Ah… Tsuyu…” Midoriya said absentmindedly. It seemed that he was still being bothered about something that had to do with Todoroki. 

“Asui,” Uraraka corrected him, smiling. 

Midoriya weakly smiled. “Asui… I’m sad that she’s not coming to the ball,” he said as he lay his back against the couch. “I actually want to know what she’s up to.” 

“Yeah… seems that too many things were going on for her to come here. It’s odd though, because I’m sure she can swim here and back to her kingdom in a hour or two.” 

Midoriya chuckled a little. Now it looked like he was relaxing a bit. “I bet she can, her quirk is so amazing. She’s not coming, but some royals from that kingdom are coming anyways. I look forward to meeting them,” he admitted. Now he too looked up at the ceiling. 

“Todoroki is engaged.” 

Uraraka quickly faced him. What had she just heard?

“Huh?” She questioned, blinking fast. “Sorry, I didn’t quite catch that…” she said with a hesitant laugh, just to just to confirm what she had heard.

But Midoriya looked unwilling to speak again, his expression looking heavy again. 

“Midoriya… how do you know?” She asked softly, placing her hand on his. So this was what was bothering him, and putting him in a mood she had never seen him in before? 

“She came with him… they have connecting rooms.” Midoriya responded blankly. 

Uraraka looked at her lap. This can’t be… can it? It wouldn’t be a surprise, since Todoroki was handsome and their kingdom has ties with kingdoms that are far away, but… is he really engaged? 

“Did he… tell you?” She asked. 

Midoriya shook his head. “He doesn’t have to.” 

Uraraka’s frown grew even larger. “But if he didn’t tell you, then you can’t know for sure, right?” She told him, but her thoughts said otherwise. If two were given connecting rooms, then surely it’s because… 

“Iida _gave_ them those rooms,” Midoriya said grimly. “He was it was ‘ _convenient’.”_

Now he sounded mad. Uraraka wasn’t sure how to handle him like this since he _never_ got like this. Maybe because of a rule or punishment here and there, but not because of someone else or was ever _upset_ at someone else. 

“What’s her name?” Uraraka asked, since they were already on the subject. Maybe she would know who it was. 

“I only got her first name, Yaoyorozu,” Midoriya admitted. 

“What? Didn’t you greet them at their arrival with Iida?” 

Midoriya looked away, embarrassed. “No. When I first saw her, my thoughts were so confused and loud that I didn’t hear what she first said to Iida. She’s… beautiful, Uraraka. Downright heavenly, her voice too,” he said with sadness. 

This didn’t help Uraraka. Now she was left completely on the dark too, not knowing who Todoroki had brought with him to the castle, and not knowing that Midoriya apparently had a whole episode of jealousy going on towards her. 

They were quiet for a moment, mainly because Uraraka had to figure out what to make from all this. So Todoroki arrived not with the king, Endeavor, but instead with a very beautiful woman, as described by Midoriya, and it sharing… connected rooms with her. 

Because of this, Midoriya is distressed and seems to have something against this women, which neither know who she actually is. 

Midoriya is definitely jealous. Uraraka could tell, but Midoriya didn’t. 

But right now, the mind that was tasked to resolve Midoriya’s anxiety wasn’t any ordinary mind. It was Uraraka. To her, everything clicked, and she knew where to go from here. 

“Midoriya,” she said in her softest tone ever, “you… care about Todoroki, don’t you?” 

Midoriya didn’t answer, instead choosing to stare at the patch of forest that was viewable from her window. 

“What you’re feeling right now… that’s jealousy,” she explained. 

Now she got his attention, because his chest rose and fell slightly faster. “But why…?” He mumbled, clearly upset. 

She smiled to herself. “Midoriya, do you really only see him as a friend?” 

Now she had done it. He sat up straight on the couch and stared at her deadly, though it didn’t do much effect in scaring her because he had a deep blush spreading across his cheeks. “I do,” he lied. And she knew he was lying. 

“Midoriya, you wouldn’t be feeling like you do if that was the case,” she explained, standing up. She brought over a pitcher of water and a cup, beginning to fill it up. “Maybe it’s Iida’s and I’s fault for bringing him up so much and teasing you about it, but tell me you grew fond of him on your own and not because of us,” she said as she handed him the cup of water. 

He stared at it for a few seconds, attempting to deny it, but he took it eventually and swallowed a huge gulp. “I know what you’re doing,” He responded coldly. 

“Whaaat?” Uraraka let out, taking a seat once again. “I’m not doing anything here. We’re talking about how _you_ feel, Midoriya.” 

“I don’t feel _anything_. He’s a stoic, smart, and rude prince from Flamuralis. Other than a friend, what is there to like about him?” 

Uraraka shrugged. “I wouldn’t know. That’s why I’m asking you, who’s spent much more time with him than any of us.”

“Much more time?” Midoriya scoffed. “Just three days. _Three_ days we spent together and you think I have some affectionate feelings for him. I’ve repeated it many times before, I don’t have time to spend around thinking about things like that. I’m a busy man.” 

Uraraka grabbed her chin. “A busy _boy_ , she corrected him. “If that was the case, how do you explain those feelings in you right now? And the ones making you feel envious towards the woman who came with him?” 

Midoriya scowled as Uraraka mentioned her. “I don’t know what it is, but it’s not jealousy.” 

“Really?” Uraraka questioned. “What do you think it is, then?” 

Midoriya remained silent for a minute. “Betrayal, anger, confusement,” he eventually answered. 

“Mm… why betrayal?” Uraraka figured it’d be best to start from there. 

“Betrayal because… he didn’t tell me. A simple letter would’ve been sufficient. ‘Hey Midoriya, how are you? By the way, I’m engaged, I’m much more different than you thought. From, Todoroki’. That would’ve been better than finding out like _this_ ,” Midoriya responded. 

Midoriya was sounding so childish right now. But it was best to get this out of his system before anything bad came from it. 

“First of all,” Uraraka began to speak, “He can’t say ‘Hey Midoriya,’ because he doesn’t even know your name is Midoriya.” She looked at him, and he rolled his eyes, but she continued. “Second, you don’t even really _know_ who she is, and what she _is_ to him. You totally missed that part while Iida greeted them, so how can you be sure?” 

Midoriya looked hesitant to talk. “Because… why else would they have connected rooms?” 

Uraraka rolled her eyes. “Even if it was Endeavor who came with him, they would’ve had connected rooms. Back when Iida was first assigned to guard you, didn’t you have connecting rooms too?” 

“... Yeah.” 

“See? Having those rooms doesn’t necessarily mean they’re spouses or what not. Unless… I’ve had the wrong idea about you and Iida all along…” 

“I’m leaving,” Midoriya announced, beginning to stand.

“You’re not,” Uraraka stopped him, grabbing his arm and leading him back down to sit. “I’m trying to help you, Midoriya, because you’re my best friend and you don’t deserve to be feeling this horribly by yourself. We’ll get to the bottom of this, I swear. Even if he was engaged, does that change how you feel about him? As your friend, like you keep suggesting?” 

“... How can we be friends if he doesn’t even tell me that he’s been _engaged_?” 

“...We don’t know if they’re engaged alright...” 

“Then what about the connecting rooms!” 

“Midoriyaaaaa.” 

He stood up once again, determined to leave this time, but she ran towards the door and barricaded it with her body. “Prince Izuku, I will not permit you to leave this room until you come to terms with yourself.” 

Midoriya closed his eyes. “I’ll deal with it later, I need to work.” 

“Nooo, you don’t. Come on.” Now she had to resort to pleading. “Midoriya, as a certified love expert, I can see very clearly what’s going on.” 

Midoriya lazily opened his eyes. “What is it then,” he said dulley. 

Uraraka had succeeded in stopping him once again. “Midoriya, you think about him a lot, don’t you?” 

He didn’t respond. 

“Before you know it, you’ve been wondering about where he’s at, or what he’s doing, wishing you were maybe there with him to see it all, right?” 

Again, he didn’t respond. This meant she was hitting the nails on the coffin. 

“You say you spent too little time with him to harbor feelings, but there’s is no maximum or minimum time to develop feelings for somebody. Whether you want to or not he comes to mind, even at the most random moments and it doesn’t bother you. Instead it relaxes you to have been able to met this person and be able to think about them. Even he mentioned it, right? That he enjoyed spending time with you as well?” 

“... He says my name in his dreams too…” Midoriya revealed, since he was remembering their time together at the base. 

Uraraka stopped her little relationship rant for a second. “Uhhh… what?” 

Midoriya looked up. “When I woke him up back at the base, he kept muttering my name, my actual name. It scared me because I thought he had figured out my identity, but he was still sleeping. When I woke him up I asked him about it, and he said the name had been coming to mind for several months or something like that.” 

Uraraka stared at him. First, she wanted to question why the heck he hadn’t mentioned that to her and Iida back then. It could’ve been related to what happened to Midoriya that night, back when he had the sleep paralysis attack, or something. 

She groaned a bit, now there was something _else_ to think about, but for now, she could use that to help her investigation with him. 

“That’s… okay... but you know what? That supports the whole ‘fate’ thing he had mentioned with you, right? Remember your first dream you had months ago, the dream where you saw him before you had met him. Now it turns out he says your name in his sleep, even though he doesn’t actually know it’s _your_ name. This is… starting to sound really corny,” she admitted. This was starting to sound like some fairytale, and if she didn’t keep her tone serious, Midoriya might start to dismiss her final proposal. 

“Anyways,” she said while she still had his attention,” Liking somebody isn’t bad, Midoriya. It most cases it actually helps. Because you want to be with him, you’re able to put more effort into your Flamuralis lessons, right?” 

_‘Maybe someday, I’ll help you see your kingdom in a new way like you did to me.’_

Those words he said to Todoroki a month ago echoed in his head. Perhaps some of the reason why he _was_ obsessing to finish his Flamuralis course was to visit the kingdom sooner… and then the sooner he’d be able to interact with Todoroki much more… 

“So you worry about him, even when they say not to, because ultimately you just want the best for them as you would for yourself. Together you will better each other and yourselves. That happens… it’s a part of _life_.”

She stood there breathing in and out slowly once she had finished, having delivered one of the most peculiar lessons ever, and to her _prince_. 

He seemed to get the message, because he sat back on the couch and dropped his head into his hands, with his elbows propped on his knees.

“... _What_ am I going to _do_?” He squeaked. 

So Uraraka had finally gotten to him. She sighed and walked over to him, sitting on the couch and wrapping her arms around him. 

“What _do_ you want to do?” 

They remained in silence like this for a few minutes, Uraraka imagining how everything is starting to make sense to Midoriya. 

In the latter’s mind, it was making sense, sort of. He still didn’t believe in romantic feelings, what even are those? But Uraraka was right in a variety of things; he does think constantly about Todoroki, he does want to be with Todoroki, he does worry about unnecessarily, he does feel motivated when he thinks about Todoroki. Whether or not these feelings have… romantic ties to them, it doesn’t change the fact that he still _feels_ them. True they were only together for three days, and since then he had denied taunts that came from Iida and Uraraka, but those feelings were there, and always have been. 

Why? He still couldn’t figure out why. Maybe he really was fate, like Uraraka briefly mentioned. Or maybe it was because Todoroki just had something… special to him. Stoic, sort of ill-mannered, rude, yet smart, capable, and brave… or rather stubborn. These are the qualities that Midoriya had barely gotten to know that Todoroki had, and he had been waiting since their last departure to learn even more. 

Even though he came to realize all these things, he’s still hurt with the arrival of the woman. 

“You know what, let’s just go ask,” Uraraka prompted, standing up. 

Midoriya grabbed her arm. “No. Absolutely not.” 

“But we have to go _prove_ that she’s not his partner, so you could stop feeling bad,” she encouraged, tugging him. 

“No, Uraraka. Isn’t it enough that I came to terms with myself?” 

“But what’s the point if you don’t explain how you feel to Todoroki?” 

“Look, understanding how I feel myself is completely different from letting someone else know…” 

“This isn’t just ‘someone else’, this is Todoroki, the one who called you a friend first, remember? Who’s to say he doesn’t feel the same?” 

Midoriya blushed. “He won’t, he doesn’t. It’s… too odd. Anyways, what's the point of saying that we like each other? What comes from that?” 

_‘Unbelievably childish….’_ Uraraka thought to herself. What comes from two people who have a mutual attraction? What happens when they let themselves be carried by that attraction? 

Of course everyone knows, except Midoriya, apparently. 

She stared at him, and he stared at her. 

“No.” Was his final answer. “Look… thank you Uraraka, truly. But now isn’t the time to act on anything, especially with such an important event coming upon on. Right now I have to… I have to do what All Might wanted me to do, and I’ll stay focused on that. There must be a time and place to think and do all of the things that you just said… but I don’t think now is the time. Really, I’m not saying that because I’m running away.” 

Uraraka pouted. He sounded honest… but he didn’t sound resolved. He still hadn’t reverted back to his cheerful self. 

“...Alright,” she gave up. “Even though you’ve been anticipating for this day to come for an entire month… But alright. Look... If anything comes up… _anything…_ come and talk to me. Please. I’ll be here for you, for everything.” 

Midoriya smiled, finally. “I will. I’ll… be in my office,” he said lastly, finally being let into the hallway. 

“If I hear you’ve been in there for more than an hour, I’m coming after you,” she joked. 

He was about to say something sly in return, but some figures to his right captured his attention. 

_Fuck._

He ran back into the room and closed the door quietly, locking it. Uraraka stared at him in confusion, until a few moments later, someone knocked on the door. 

“Uraraka?” Someone asked. It was Alice’s voice. 

“Yes, Alice?” Uraraka responded, even though Midoriya was signaling for her to not say anything. 

“Is Deku in there?” Alice asked innocently. 

Uraraka looked at Midoriya who was below her, pleading with his hands locked together that she wouldn’t say the truth. He looked really… desperate. 

“No, he isn’t,” Uraraka chose to respond, and Midoriya’s face finally relaxed. “Why?” 

“Prince Todoroki from Flamuralis is looking for him, apparently he ran off earlier.“ 

Someone’s footsteps then came closer and also in front of the door. 

“Uraraka,” Todoroki’s stern voice traveled passed the door. “You really haven’t seen him around?” 

_‘Yikes’,_ Uraraka thought. Todoroki was standing right outside the door, searching for Midoriya, who was sinking on the walk beside the door with a look of total shock on his face, and a little tint of pink on his face. 

Uraraka didn’t even question about what she should respond when she saw her prince in his current state. She earnestly felt bad.

“Your highness, I have not, I apologize. I am finishing a task here and offer to look for him when I am finished.” 

She looked back down at Midoriya, who was reminding himself to breath in and out. 

Oh boy, what had she _done_ to him? 

“It’s fine, I do not wish to disturb you. Carry on,” Todoroki said. The footsteps then appeared to walk away and got quieter until they were no longer heard by the range of their ears. 

Midoriya finally picked himself up from the floor. “Bless you… Uraraka…” he said between breaths. 

“You’re… welcome,” she said, not sure if she was really worthy of thanks. “You’re welcome to stay here with me… or… I’ll check if the coast is clear?” 

“In a minute, I need to, um, calm this,” he said, reaching for her hand. He took it and placed it on the left side of his chest, were his heart was, and Uraraka was quite alarmed at how fast that thing must’ve been pumping. 

She suddenly cupped her face with her hands, quietly squealing, “That is sooooo cute.”

After a few cups of water and deep breathing exercises, Midoriya felt normal enough to sneak away to his office. Uraraka checked out the perimeters, and figured the coast was clear, after which he was off on his way. 

On his his way to deal with his newfound feelings. 

Uraraka watched him from behind proudly, waiting for a few minutes before she got into her room, closed her door, and then sunk down against it. 

She cupped her hands with her face again, dropping her head down onto her knees. That talk that she just gave to Midoriya… it didn’t just come from nowhere. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> mm, love some clueless Deku  
> thanks to Uraraka, maybe he'll finally be able to say "I'm in like with you" to Todoroki


End file.
